Don't Starve: What This World Has to Offer (Chapters 1-18 Rewritten)
by Phoenixflame of Thunderclan
Summary: Three creatures found each other awoken in the same place, at the same time. Follow Webber, WX-78, and Wilson as they are forced to fight against perilous beasts to regain their freedom, in a world where everything is against them. Will they succeed? Or will they succumb to their own inner demons? As different as they are, surely they can work together to be freed...
1. Chapter 1 The Bane of Our Existence

**Part 1:**

 **The Reign of Giants**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

There was something near us. Something was dark. Something was wrong. What had happened last? We could not recall.

 _"I wonder if he'll live..."_ a voice echoed. We strained our eyes to see who was talking. _"Do you think he'll be okay?"_

 _"I doubt it,"_ said another voice. _"That's a nasty wound."_

 _"He_ can't _die... I won't let him."_ A third voice croaked, horror and fear edging its voice.

Are they talking to us?

Who are they?

 _Who are they?_

We heard the sound of footsteps and sighing, then something cold pressed against our back. _"I can't lose you,"_ the third voice whispered. _"I just can't... you're the only friend I've ever had. Please... please don't leave us..."_

Awareness began to spread to our limbs, and the dark curtain began to fade, and with that, the memories. We blinked our eyes open, the sunlight dazzling us for a few minutes. _There are others_ , I thought. _Are they the same people? No, it can't be... there's only two..._

Our instincts came rushing back to us in a flood, and we jumped back from the others, who were also just stirring. The first one blinked in shock at the sight of us. He was taller than us, obviously an adult, with spiked black hair and confused gray eyes. We bared our teeth threateningly.

"Whoa," he breathed, struggling to stand. "C.. can you speak?"

 _Does he think we're stupid? Is he trying to find weaknesses?_

 _At least he speaks English._

"Yes," I said slowly, not moving. He visibly relaxed. We turned our gaze to the third one. He was also sitting up, looking at both of us with disdain.

This one was a tan robot, obviously masculine and more our height, his 'face' was two identical holes for eyes, and a longer, thinner one underneath for a mouth. He did not look happy in the slightest bit, but perhaps that was just his appearance. He met our look with a fierce glare. "WHAT _ARE_ YOU?" He spat.

 _We will fight if we have to._

 _But not yet._

"What are _you_?" I countered, looking him up and down. _If he wants a fight, he'll get one. We've fought for years now, one more opponent is no different... even if he is slightly bigger than me._

"WHAT AM I?" He asked, tipping his chin arrogantly. "MODEL WX-78, _FLESHLING._ " _He's aggressive._

"Webber," I hissed back. We jerked our gaze to the other one.

"Wilson," he replied quietly.

We let our shoulders relax, and fur lie flat again, straightened slightly, and put away our claws and snarl. _If they aren't going to hurt us, then we need to seem harmless to them._ "What are you doing here?"

"Do you know where we are?" The first one- Wilson- asked hopefully, examining our spiderlike appearance.

"No. Do _you_?"

He shook his head, and we sighed. _Trust no one, isn't that what our life has taught us?_

 _Maybe we need to trust someone?_

 _No._ I thought stubbornly. _We can rely on ourself._ But looking at these other two... these other two in the same predicament as us. We looked at Wilson. _He looks trustworthy, but..._ our gaze met WX-78's. _Not so sure about him..._

 _Were they the ones talking to us?_ We instinctively ran our hand over our neck and stomach, the most likely places for a fatal wound, but there was nothing but smooth skin and old scars beneath our fur.

WX let out a huff of scorn, before walking away.

"Hey!" I exclaimed, moving to catch him. "Where are you going?"

Wilson caught our shoulder. "Don't bother. I know his type. He'll come back if he wants to, but no use forcing him to stay with us." He cocked his head and smiled.

We weren't sure exactly what to say. Not only were we not used to being spoken to directly in such tones, but we hadn't been _smiled_ at in ages. "Us?" I repeated. "You mean you're staying?"

He looked confused. "Why wouldn't I? It'd be better if we stick together, right?"

"Y-you mean you aren't _afraid_ of us?" I couldn't help blurting out.

"Afraid," he echoed. "Just out of curiosity's sake... how old are you? Surely you couldn't survive on your own for long."

"Seven," I answered quietly. "And we can... we have before."

He laughed. "Okay, how about _I_ probably can't survive on my own for long."

"You never have?"

"I lived alone," he replied. "Not... _alone_ alone though."

"Are you suggesting it's only us?" I asked in horror.

"Us and... WX-78? Was that his name?"

"Yeah, 'think so." We cocked our head. "You think we're alone, though? No one else?" We realized too late how small our voice sounded. We were scared.

We were _scared._

 _We're not_ , a tiny voice in our mind whispered. _We're not scared. Being scared is for cowards, and so is relying on others._ We pushed it back as Wilson seemed to struggle finding words.

"We can only assume we are alone until we find other people here," he pointed out gently, then nodded to the area around us. We realized for the first time that we were in a small forest clearing. We listened hard for distant birdsong to greet us, but it was silent. "Besides, it's getting dark." Our gaze snapped up to the darkening sky. _Already!?_ "We should just... set up camp for the night, and figure out what we're going to do in the morning. A chill wind brushed the leaves above us, making us shiver. A tang of frost was carried on the breeze, but we couldn't tell if it was turning cold or it had been colder and was warming up.

"Yeah."

…

"Why? Why did you do this?" a voice whimpered nearby, and it took us a second to realize it was _our_ voice.

"I had no choice," someone else replied. We felt grief welling up in our chest. "You know, w-we fought a lot before. And I'm sorry. I regret it. I regret all of it... but I don't regret this decision." _What decision!_ Our mind cried. _Who are we talking to and_ why!?

It didn't last long though, because then we were crouching over... something? Darkness still pressed around us, but ragged breathing ruffled our hand fur. "No... No... th-this can't be happening." This time, our voice sounded ever so slightly different. "We can't lose you too. Can you even hear us? Please... we're sorry."

We jerked awake, heart pounding, early sunlight momentarily blinding us. The robot had apparently returned, and sat nearby, leaning against a tree at the edge of the clearing with an odd black book leaning up against a sapling beside him. He did not acknowledge our presence. Our dream weighed heavily on our mind, but the details had already faded. Wilson was looking at us, confusion in his gray eyes. "Are... you okay?"

"We're fine," I told him.

Suddenly, the fur on the back of our neck stood on end, and we saw that WX had looked up at us, his gaze dark with pure hatred. We narrowed our eyes at him. _If you want to hate us, fine. We'll hate you too._


	2. Chapter 2 The Book of Darkness

_**A/N:**_ **Wow, after rewriting the first chapter, I realized how much my writing style's changed since writing it the first time. 0o0 Yeah, for new readers... be glad you didn't have to read the original version of the first chapter... the version I wrote while half-asleep lol. Hope I can fix this one up pretty also ^-^**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __ _What did I do to deserve this?_ I silently wondered, fixating the other two with looks of hatred. _Humans!_ I hissed to myself. _I'm sitting next to two pathetic humans. Oh, how disappointed you'd be in me..._ I tried to push the last thought away. I reached instinctively for the book at my side, reassuring myself with its presence. There was something odd about the smooth black leather of the cover, like it was _too_ pristine, _too_ well kept to have just been abandoned. Sure, there was someone next to it, but the clean white bones of the skeleton, it's face locked in an eternal scream of terror, suggested they had been dead a _very_ long time. Seeing the skeleton filled me with a sort of dark satisfaction. Another part of me wished that that was one of these _fleshlings_ I was stuck with.

I realized too late that while I had been deep in thought, my glare had been situated on the spider who introduced himself as Webber. He was looking at me back, his lip curled in a snarl and fur bristling. I met his glower evenly, and he looked away first. Without looking away, I stroked the book's cover once more. A shock seemed to zap my finger as I touched the red symbol in the center of the book, and I was thrown into a torrent of what felt like memories, but I could not recall them ever happening. A grief-stricken wail that pierced the air, the rushing sound of footsteps, the _clank_ ing of my own self falling to the ground. I panicked for just a moment, before reminding myself where I was. _I am safe._ I reminded myself sharply. _I am safe._ Gradually, the feeling ebbed away, and I suddenly felt very weak. I slid down the bark of the tree, holding my head until I was in a sitting position. I felt like I could hardly stand. _I recognized that voice_ , I thought in horror. I shook the feeling away, and when I had finally controlled myself, I noticed that Webber had looked at me again, his gaze mocking.

Wilson appeared to have noticed the look, too, because he looked faintly concerned and said something to the spider. It was too far for me to hear, but by the way he nodded and stood up, I could only assume that they were going somewhere. _Good,_ I thought. _I can be alone now._ I stood, trying to keep my knees from buckling again. I grabbed the book again, my grip shaky. The symbol was _too_ red, and pulsing oddly. I tried to drop it, but failed.

Suddenly, I was on the ground, panic setting in. I looked up sharply, only to see that Webber was standing over me, his whiskers twitching with amusement. "You were _so_ out of it," he sneered. Angrily, I kicked his legs out from under him, causing him to nearly fall on top of me with a squeak of protest, then I kicked him onto his back.

"You two! Quit fighting!" Wilson demanded. I turned indignantly to him.

"HE STARTED IT!" I protested.

"What are you, four? Grow up." Despite the sharp words, there was an underlying gentleness to his voice, almost as though he were speaking to children. I nearly sniped back at him, but Webber was nodding seriously at me.

"We should listen to him." There was still a mocking note in his voice. "After all, he is an _adult._ " However, as he turned his gaze to Wilson, he eyed him with a sort of desperate hunger. I knew that look. He was wanting _approval._ Not knowing nor caring if he received it, I stood up and brushed the dirt off of my knees and, my fingers trembling, picked up the book once more. "What's that?" Webber asked, hopping up to look at it himself. I snatched it away with a glare.

"NOTHING," I snapped.

"It... _looks_ like something," he ventured, trying to pull my arm down to look at it.

I promptly replied by smacking him in the back of the head with it.

He yelped at the sudden pain which I used to push him down, stalking to the other side of the clearing with my chin tipped upwards as Wilson helped him to his feet. Two sets of eyes burned into my back- one confused and concerned, the other enraged beyond compare. Without a word and before the spider could do anything in retaliation, I pushed my way out of the clearing, still holding the book.

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __" _We're gonna rip that little jerk limb from limb when we get our hands on him!_ " Webber roared, trying to struggle away from my vice grip on his arm.

"No one's ripping anyone limb from limb," I informed him patiently, trying to hide my teeth grinding in frustration. To be honest, when he first said his age, I was shocked and confused. He was _a kid._ A _kid!_ First of all, what in the world was he doing in a place like this, and why was he so intent on violently dismembering someone he literally just met. He struggled, of course, but he soon gave up, his bottom lip twitching in a barely suppressed snarl.

"Fine," he muttered.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "That means no fighting at all."

He stared at me for a few seconds, his mouth agape as though I had just told him to jump off of a cliff. "He _hit us_ ," he reminded me sharply, rubbing the back of his head for emphasis.

"It's not that bad," I pointed out lightly. "It could've been worse." _After all, a human-sized hunk of metal and gears could probably have done much worse had he wanted to. Something kept him back though... I know the look of someone who hates someone else, that's definitely what I have on my hands here... but why would WX-78 just whack him instead of going full-blown murder on him? I need to look into that later. For now, I need to figure out how I going to keep these two in line without taking suicidal risks._ I wasn't very fond of the idea of going against a human-sized hunk of metal and gears either, and even without looking I could tell the spider boy's fangs could do some serious damage should he want to hurt me.

He tore his arm away from my grip and sat grumpily down where he stood in a criss-cross applesauce manner and his arms folded over his chest. "He's still a jerk," he growled.

I sighed. I knew I had my hands full with these two, but tried to stay neutral. To be honest, I didn't particularly _want_ to take sides- WX was being a jerk but Webber was being violent, they both needed to calm down. "I'll go find WX," I sighed again.

He jumped up again, glaring at me now. "You're _going to find him_?"

"We're in this together," I replied.

"We don't want to deal with him!"

"Then leave."

That shut him up real quick, resigning to mumbling under his breath instead of protesting aloud. _I don't think he realizes that we need each other... maybe they will mellow out after awhile._

The look of pure hatred that Webber was shooting the area where WX disappeared said otherwise. Shaking my head, I went off in search of the irritable bot. Much to my surprise, Webber followed me. Whether that was to actually find him or to find a way to hurt him was beyond me. Luckily, being a very heavy robot, he made quite the trail through the brush. It cleared out into a grassland with several clear-water ponds. The clearing was filled with frogs- not like the frogs from my world, where they were only the size of your fist at most, these frogs were _enormous._ One was so big it was up to my knee's length. Webber did not seemed fazed in the slightest of the giant creatures, he just casually weaved among them while I looked on in shock. How in the world was the spider so confident? Surely whatever part of the world he came from, he never saw frogs this big.

"What are you?" I blurted, causing him to stop completely with his foot in the air. I saw him take a deep breath, then turn to me. He did not look happy. "Are you actually a spider?"

"Partially," he mumbled, turning back to the ponds without another word. I opened my mouth to ask his meaning, then realized that he'd probably add me to his hitlist if I wasn't already on it. _How is that possible? Inbreeding? I mean... is it possible for a spider to breed with a human? Or... he sure looks like a human under all that fur._ My mind swirled with possibilities of what the strange spider-child might be. I was still in a daze when I managed to force my shocked body to move, walking in the footsteps he took. The look on his face when I asked him what he was... was that sadness? Anger that I had asked such a question? Regret? _Of course_. Realization suddenly dawned on me. _If my theories are correct in assuming he is half human, half spider, who would want to be around him? People would be terrified of him because he looks like a spider, and spiders... well, spiders are_ way too small to worry about. _So how in the world does he exist because spiders are_ very small creatures that cannot breed with a human! _Maybe he's some sort of lab experiment. That probably makes the most sense. An experiment on what would happen if they mixed a spider and human's DNA?_

I was so deep in thought, it wasn't until Webber grabbed the collar of my shirt to keep me from falling into one of the frog ponds that I realized I had been in the danger of doing so in the first place. I took a few steps back, staring at it. I turned to thank him only to realize that he had already started moving again, completely ignoring that I even existed. Confused, I jogged a bit to catch up to him. "You alright?" I asked.

"No."

I was taken aback for a second at his bluntness. "What's wrong."

"Nothing. I don't like talking about it, that's all."

I felt guilty for my earlier questioning.

"It's nothing against you, you seem like a good person." His whiskers twitched. "It's just... a touchy subject, I guess."

"Your... past?"

He nodded, not meeting my gaze. Suddenly, he picked up his pace. "WX!" He called, less hatred in his voice compared to earlier, surprising me. Then my blood froze. The robot had apparently collapsed, the book he had been obsessing over a few paces away. My first instinct was to try to shake him awake, but of course, Webber had other ideas. With a satisfied smile, he kicked the robot as hard as he could in the chest.

It seemed to hurt Webber more than it hurt WX, but it was still enough to rouse him. While the first hopped on one foot, grimacing in pain, the latter blinked open his 'eyes'. With a soft groan, he pulled himself to his feet, albeit wobbly on his feet. "What happened to you?" I asked, but he didn't seem to realize that I was standing there.

Under his breath, he quietly murmured "I'M SORRY."

I found my gaze drifting to the black book at his side. He followed it and slowly picked it up. Some part of my mind knew that that book was what caused him to act oddly. Without knowing why, I shivered. _What is that book? It's... unreal... It's... dangerous._


	3. Chapter 3 The Tree Guardian

_**Webber's POV**_

 __The next morning brought new adventure. Wilson had decided to stay back at where our makeshift base was gradually showing up, and WX had stayed with him. Before we left, we heard them arguing about the book.

"WX! Come on! Just let me look at it!"

The robot had arrogantly turned away, tipping his chin upwards like he always did. "NEVER! YOUR _PUNY FLESHLING_ MIND COULD NEVER COMPREHEND WHAT LAYS INSIDE OF IT!"

"That's why I want to look at it! So I can understand what it mean- _come on!_ "

"YOU'LL NEVER UNDERSTAND IT!" And with those last words, he got up once more- as customary for him nowadays whenever he started an argument- and stalked out of the clearing- at least not the same way as last time. We caught Wilson muttering under his breath. He let out a sigh that hinted that he was trying very hard not to say or do something but his patience was running out.

We said nothing, just calmly stood and brushed the dirt off of our knees. Hunger was beginning to tug at our senses. So far, we had noticed the other two foraging for berries and such, but we craved meat. We hadn't even attempted to get any sort of food ourself. This was not starvation. We had felt starvation before. This was a simple hunger. Still didn't mean that it was starting to gnaw at us. We nodded once to the scientist, then prepared to set off as well, in the direction opposite of the frog ponds. _Day three_. Had it already been three days since we arrived? The first night was probably the worst for all of us. It had been uncomfortably dark around our campfire, and when we tried once to step out into the night, we could've sworn we heard someone whisper our name in our ear. Ever since then, we had decided to never go into the darkness again.

Shaking away these thoughts, we decided that maybe we could get something productive done and scout a bit. Whether or not we would keep moving or stay at our fire was beyond us. We stopped for a moment and let the smells of the forest smother our senses. Up ahead, the sun was shining cheerfully, bathing the woods in a soft golden glow and speckling the ground with rays of light. After a moment of concentrating, our mind latched onto what we were searching for and run ahead on light feet. The forest began to thin out before we broke out into plain, golden grasses as far as the eye could see. Our eyes caught on the one thing we wanted to see. Large, brown-furred rabbits. Whiskers twitching in excitement, we followed the creatures' movements. Hunting was never our forte, but something like rabbits should not be a problem. They wouldn't know what hit them. We looked around for a moment, looking for something sharp to hunt with. _That'll do!_ There was a thick, sharp rock on the ground a few paces away. We grabbed it and moved slowly over to one of the rabbit burrows, situation ourself between it and the rabbit that nibbled mindless on the grass nearby. Something must have spooked it though, because it paused and rose onto its hind legs, sniffing the air cautiously. With a sudden scream that made us jump, it fled backwards and right into us. We quickly killed the beast with a stab to the throat with the rock, then lifted it to examine it. It was big, but we knew from experience that not much of that was edible meat. At the moment, however, we did not care. We grinned. At least we knew that we had a supply of meat.

When we got back to camp, we saw Wilson's eyes widen at the rabbit in our hands. "Where did you find that?" He asked.

"There's a grassland over there that has a bunch of these," I answered calmly. "They're really not hard to hunt at all. They're pretty dumb. Can't survive off berries forever."

He nodded, a smile spreading across his face. "Do you know how to _prepare_ meat?"

We nodded. "Our father used to keep goats. He taught us how."

He let out a nervous chuckle. "Good, because I don't know how to."

We snickered. "We can teach you how?"

He was silent for a few seconds. "Why do you talk like that...?" He asked tentatively.

We paused for a second. "Like what?"

"Well... you say 'we' instead of 'I'... why?"

We wondered for a moment how to explain without teasing old memories or breaking his mind. "When we were five, we were eaten by a spider. Now, we think together." That was a little too far, because our chest ached for just a second after saying that.

"R-really? You know..." he chuckled again. "It's not scientifically possible for a spider to be of human-eating size..." he clamped his mouth shut as we felt the old feeling stir up again.

With a forced smile, we shrugged. "Nothing around here is scientifically possible. You just haven't seen much of it yet." He seemed to turn a shade paler at the ominous words, but before he could start up the questioning again we turned back to the grassland. "We'll go hunting again, and we can show you how to prepare live animals tonight, 'kay?"

"O-okay."

By the time we got to the grassland again, we were aware that we weren't the only ones to have discovered it, and it just so happened that the other one to have found it was WX, and he was intent on his own hunt. He wasn't fast like us though, he was heavy and clumsy. We grabbed the flint from earlier, grinning madly as it ran right into us. We lunged forward and stabbed it in its throat, feeling it go limp.

The robot stomped his foot. "HEY!" He protested. "THAT WAS _MINE_!"

"Yours?" I barked a laugh. "Should've gotten it first, then." We noticed a tension in his limbs that suggested he was holding back a lot of anger. Our grin only widened, which apparently he took as further aggression.

"ARE YOU _TRYING_ TO START SOMETHING?" He growled under his breath.

 _Were_ we trying to start something? Had we gotten so used to fighting that that was we could do now? "Maaaaaybe?" As we met his glare evenly, realization hit us like a rock. This was not about the rabbit. He hated us. Being stuck with us for even three days was enough to round up enough hatred for him to hate us. This word was enough provocation, because next thing we knew, we were on the ground and our left cheek burned like fire. The pain disappeared in an instant to be replaced with fury. Back on our feet in an instant, we tackled him to the ground. Shock flared in his 'eyes' as though he did not expect us to be able to retaliate so quickly. We weren't used to fighting machines, but he acted so natural it was easier than we expected. He pushed us off as though we were a leaf and instantly took advantage of our surprise to use his weight to pin us down and put what felt like all of his strength to punch all out at our face. The biggest problem with this one that we were not used to...

He. Was. _Heavy._ When we finally managed to push him off, we were sure our jaw had been broken and maybe some of our ribs _just_ from his weight. The second we were back on our feet again, we launched ourself at him, causing both of us to tumble down back towards the forest, which was located down a slope. The breath was suddenly knocked out of our chest as we were rammed into the trunk of a thick pine tree. WX jumped back in an instant even though we were temporarily paralyzed in shock and our stomach and throat were wide open.

The ground was shaking, or at least, it felt like it was shaking. We didn't realize that we had landed on a half-buried root until it was yanked out from under us. Reality crashed over us like a wave as soon as we saw the trees branches morph into limbs.

The tree was alive.

Without the breath in our lungs, we could not run until we could get it back, and the paralysis lasted until, without warning, WX grabbed our arm and started to run, apparently trying to get us away from the beast even though this very same robot was trying to kill us just seconds before. He looked over his shoulder at us, and we noticed pure terror dancing in his gaze. "WHAT ARE YOU _DOING_? ARE YOU TRYING TO GET US BOTH KILLED? _RUN_!"

"What is that thing!?"

"SOMETHING YOU _DON'T_ WANT TO MESS WITH! _SPLIT UP!_ " The shouted direction took a second for us to process, but by the time we figured out what he said he had taken off in a separate direction. Hoping his plan would work, we quickly changed direction to run in the opposite direction he had. A frustrated roar followed by heavy stomping in our direction told us it was giving chase, and we had to scrabble over thick roots and push away trailing branches just to keep somewhat of a lead on it. Before we even knew what was happening, the beast had gained on us and the breath was driven once more from our lungs as it swiped at us, not quite impaling us but sending us crashing into a tree painfully. Luckily, this one did not turn to attack as well. It wasn't much for keeping our spirits up. We lay still, unsure if we even could get up again, and the beast stayed put for a good hour, before aiming one last blow at where we stood, forcing out a silent wail of agony as white hot pain ripped through our legs, then stomped off again with grunts of satisfaction. _It must've thought we were dead..._ _Or are we dead? Wow, we've been here a grand total of three days and already dead. Good job, Webber. Great surviving skills!_

Something must have happened after that. We must have passed out or something, because next thing we were conscious of was being on some sort of grass bed. Our jaw stung like fury, and the pain in our legs was almost unbearable. But what mattered was that we were alive, and once again, at camp. We wondered for just a few moments who brought us back, but the train of thought was completely derailed as we attempted to say something to the figure by the fire- most likely Wilson- and the pain in our jaw struck back with a renewed strength. We must have been able to do something to alert Wilson of being awake once more, because he turned around and his steady expression melted into relief. "You're awake!" he breathed. "You're actually awake! I would've thought that you would've been out out for much longer than that..." he tapped his chin thoughtfully. "I might have to look into that, but thank goodness you're alright. No- don't try to talk," he sputtered as we braced ourself against the torture of moving our jaw to speak. "It might make it worse."

Being unable to speak, we raised an eyebrow, flinching.

"Your jaw is severely bruised. I can't tell if it's broken until the swelling's gone down. Your legs, however, appear to have been shattered." He blinked, then narrowed his eyes. "Don't tell me you two fought. Ah, I can tell by the look on your face you're still confused. You see, after WX told me what happened, I asked about you. He said he didn't know nor care- as to be expected- but at least had the decency to show me where you two had been attacked. The-uh- broken tree limbs and felled trees told me the rest."

"What was that thing?" I forced, causing Wilson to flinch and look even more worried.

"The tree guard?" He asked, and we nodded. "It's-well-a tree guard. Pretty nasty creature, I can't tell you anything about it you didn't learn from being chased by it like that."

"How...?"

"How... how do I know what it's called?" He guessed, and grinned madly as he revealed the black book, the very book WX had been trying to keep him from getting to, under his arm. "It has all the mysteries of this place... all the creatures, all the fauna, all the... victims..."

"Victims?"

" _Stop that_ ," he demanded. "You're making it worse on both of us. But yes, the victims. Everyone that... _he_... has tricked."

 _Maxwell_. The name flared in our mind, burning the searing picture into our thoughts. Was that his name? The man who talked to us...?

"Some of them... some of them have these red 'M's over them... I don't know what they mean... I'm not sure I want to know what they mean. And yes, we have the honor of being one of those. That would've been your next question, wouldn't it have been?"

Most likely.

The next one after that, though, would have been _there's MORE!?_ _We're not alone!?_

"And... you still look like you have questions..."

 _How is anyone that good at reading body language?_

"Let me guess, where's WX?"

 _...No..._

He shrugged. "He's off doing... robot things. I don't really know what he does when he's not trying to start something other than indirectly starting something, so I can't really answer that question." His eyes softened. "You must still be exhausted from that experience. I can't say I blame you. Tell you what," he added with a hint of adventurous excitement in his voice. "I found a little plain just full of bees not too far from here, and from what I've learned of survival, honey would be very useful for you. Not to mention we might be able to get that arm wound fixed up." _Arm wound?_ We hadn't noticed until now, but a gash had been ripped open in between our wrist and elbow. "Just noticing it now? Good, I was worried that you were having problems with that as well as the jaw and leg thing. I guess what they say about your body focusing on the worst wound is true," he concluded. "You get some rest. I _think_ I can handle WX for just a few days. You need to sleep to heal yourself."

We almost protested about being useless but we cut ourself off as we remembered his earlier reaction to speaking at all. And besides... we _were_ feeling awfully sleepy...


	4. Chapter 4 Broken

_**A/N:**_ **For first time readers, my apologies if you are confused about events that are talking about in one chapter that didn't happen before... you might just wanna read along as I fix them, because you might get VERY confused if you read ahead. Go ahead though, do whatever you like, just a precaution.**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"You feeling better?" I asked Webber, who had recently woken up and was sitting up, but looked perfectly miserable. "So-um- I don't think your jaw's broken, just fractured... can you speak?"

"Sounds like a familiar question," he mumbled. "But yeah, better than we could yesterday anyway. Will we be able to walk again?"

"Should be... I don't see why not, though you'd have to take it easy for awhile. You won't be able to for a few weeks... broken bones don't just heal over night."

His eyes widened. "You're telling us we won't be able to do anything for _weeks-_ Wilson!" His voice turned whiny when he exclaimed my name, and I was taken slightly aback. _He was threatening to tear WX limb from limb just a couple of days ago... and now he's kind of showing his kid side!_

"Yes," I replied firmly. He sighed heavily, cringing, and I raised an eyebrow. I hadn't gathered any honey yet for his arm, but surely that wasn't what hurt this time. "What's wrong?"

"You've been trying to figure out what happened, haven't ch'a?"

I was shocked into silence. Was I really that predictable? Then again, I assumed I probably freaked him out yesterday when I was guessing his questions, but they were questions anyone would have- or at least I assumed so. Behind me, I sensed WX flinching.

"Isn't it obvious?" He adopted a wry look. "Come on, guess."

"You two got into a fight about something stupid."

"He started it," the spider flashed, admitting I had guessed right without an ounce of guilt or shock. "He hit us."

"YOU PROVOKED ME!" The robot protested, shoving me aside to glare at Webber.

" _Stop it_!" I stomped my foot. "I am _sick_ of you two always _fighting_! I don't care who started it, I don't care who hit who first. All I know for certain is that Webber is one of us, _WX_ , and he is _hurt_." As I turned to glare WX down, I saw in the corner of my eye that Webber had tried to hiss something in reply, but the quick movement must have hurt because he snapped his mouth shut, holding one hand over where the break would have been and resorted to just glowering.

WX met my gaze evenly, a hint of challenge in his 'eyes'. At first, I had thought that WX had started it after all, given the way he hit the spider without hesitation because of his curiosity over the book, but now I realized just the look he was giving me was enough to instantly make anyone hostile, and it was becoming more and more likely to me that Webber had been the one to throw the first punch. "HE'S HURT BECAUSE OF HIS OWN STUPIDITY," WX huffed. "I LACK THE EMPHATHY MODULE TO FEEL BAD FOR THE IGNORANT."

"If you're so amazing actually fight us this time and don't cower at the first sight of danger!"

He took a step forward, hand raised in readiness to take him up on the offer. "You know what?" My patience finally snapping, I smacked his hand down and wrapped my leg around his, yanking his feet out from under him, and pushed him to the ground. He landed with a dull _thump,_ and Webber's eyes stretched wide in admiration.

"Wow!" He breathed. "We wish _we_ could do that!"

"I said stop it. Which means you two stop fighting! WX, come with me."

"NO!" He jumped to his feet, 'eyes' burning with anger. "I'M _NOT_ BEING STUCK WITH A _MEATSACK._ "

"Are you saying you'd rather be stuck with Webber? Because- you know what, that sounds like a great idea. Think of it as a team building exercise. Step one: You two stay here without killing each other. Step two: You two find a way to keep yourselves from killing each other. Done!"

Despite my loss of patience, I could've died laughing by the identical looks of pure rage and shock that the two gave me.

"While you two are learning how to be friends, I'm going to be gathering honey for Webber's wound. You know, doing something _productive_? Wh- _What_ is so funny?" A wide grin had been spreading across the spider's face. "What?" 

"You're," he paused, snickering. "You're literally just gonna leave and pretend we aren't gonna try to hurt each other physically and/or mentally?"

"I'm going to leave and _hope_ you two aren't gonna try to hurt each other physically and/or mentally." I scowled at him. "Come on! You two have known each other for _four days._ _Four days_ for Pete's sake, that isn't enough to _hate each other_ the way you two do!"

"OH, HOW... ADORABLE," WX sneered. "YOU HAVE BEEN _SO_ SHELTERED, HAVEN'T YOU? FIRST TIME SEEING THE OUTSIDE WORLD, WILSON? OR ARE YOU JUST _DULL_?"

I took a deep breath. "WX, I'm not going to give you the pleasure of starting something-"

"SCARED, SCIENTIST?"

"No, I just don't fight to solve my problems."

"AH, WE HAVE A _COWARD_ THEN?" 

"Says the one who ran as soon as he saw the treeguard!" Webber snapped.

I rubbed my temples.

"I MIGHT HAVE SAVED YOUR _LIFE_!" Actual shock reverberated in his voice, and I perked at the new information.

"What!?"

The spider looked faintly lost, as though he either did not realize he had did so or he just remembered that he did.

"SHOULD'VE GUESSED WE WOULD HAVE LEFT OUT THAT DETAIL. AFTERALL, WHAT DOES THAT MAKE THE EVER-SO-BRAVE-WEBBER IF WILSON KNEW HE COMPLETELY FROZE UP." He tipped his chin. "I HAD TO PRACTICALLY DRAG HIM AWAY TO KEEP IT FROM DOING EVEN WORSE."

Webber lowered his gaze, muttering under his breath.

"What?"

"Maybe we didn't _want_ you to save our life," he growled before lying back down and turning his back on us.

I was completely lost for words. Had he really just said he wanted to die? Or was he just feeling like he wanted to because of the amount of pain he was in? I couldn't help him more than I already had- minus the wound on his arm- and the way he winced when he sighed earlier lead me to believe that damage had been done to his ribs also, so maybe...?

I noticed that WX had a similar look of shock and even a bit of concern, but as soon as I looked at him he quickly covered it up with a sneer, so I wasn't even sure if I had actually seen it or not. "AREN'T YOU SUPPOSED TO BE GOING SOMEWHERE?" He asked me impatiently.

I found myself opening and closing my mouth a few times, trying to form words. He let out a slightly annoyed huff and turned back to the fire we had tried to keep alive. All of the wood had burned away, leaving just a pile of ash and charcoal in its wake, and the breath suddenly rushed out of my lungs in a heavy sigh. He brushed the ashes away and lifted his axe over his shoulder. The axe was another thing that had just appeared randomly- WX had found it and had refused to explain its origins, but it had made better fires than the meager pickings of grass and twigs we had been living off of until then.

Had I not heard the tremor of terror quivering in the spider's voice when he told me about the voice that whispered to him in the darkness, I would've believed it was just a figment of his young, childlike mind, and we wouldn't have resorted to burning small amounts of grasses and twigs to keep the darkness away when we couldn't find the proper wood we needed. However useful WX's axe was- however- it unsettled me to know we had no clue how he found it. Did he find someone already dead? Did he raid someone's camp? Did he _kill_ someone?

Any of the possibilities were likely knowing him.

As the robot delved into the forest for wood, I took a few moments before going out myself to check on Webber's wounds. He had fallen asleep again, luckily, so I was able to check him for wounds other than his arm, jaw and legs, namely his ribs. They didn't look broken... perhaps just fractures like his jaw, or even just bruised. I frowned again at his arm. He might not feel it compared to the more intense pain that must have been in his broken bones, but that didn't stop it from becoming deadly should it get infected. To be honest, that was my biggest priority. I reached out to check when he stiffened before I even touched his chest. I paused, my hand in midair. His teeth were bared and his hands were clenched around his grass bed. Confusion gave way to fear for the child, and I shook him fiercely, trying to wake him up. His eyes snapped open and he yelped, pushing me away. "Watch it!"

"What... _was_ that!?" I demanded.

"What was what?" His voice was turning sleepy again.

I frowned a bit. "Night terrors?"

"Nightmares," he replied instantly, sighing as he tried to relax. To be honest, I wasn't sure what startled him more. The nightmare or me waking him up. "Don't worry yourself about it... it's... just one of the perks of being us." Another heavy sigh that melted into a soft snore, and I wondered for just a moment if he would even recall that this had happened. I lightly patted the boy's furry shoulder.

"We'll get you all fixed up, Webber," I murmured to him. "WX and I... he cares too, trust me. I can tell. You'll be better in no time."

Bees, for the most part, are very protective creatures, namely over their home and honey. Luckily, they were also big, heavy, and slow animals, making it pathetically easy to just outrun them. This made the hard part not not getting injured by them, but finding a way to _contain_ honey. It was too easy to take simple things like jars for granted, but when you found yourself without one, it suddenly became a distant, pleasant thought. I found myself having to carry the honeycomb with my bare hands, causing the oozing yellow liquid to drip through my partially spread fingers and making my shirt sticky with honey.

By the time I got back, I was surprised beyond words to find that the robot had actually reappeared shortly before I had gotten back, and currently had his back to a tree trunk, a pile of odd shaped tree nuts to the right of him, to the left of him was a collection of intricately carved figurines. "What are those?"

"BIRCHNUTS."

I frowned, realizing I should have known that. After all, it wasn't exactly a secret that I had snatched the book from him. I should've remembered it from the reading, but I must have dozed off before getting to information about them. "New trees?" 

He nodded, squinting at another birchnut he held in one hand. The outer coating had been sliced off clearly to reveal a whitish green inside. He used the axe he held to chip a few slices of it off. Webber was conscious again, though he still appeared drowsy. His eyelids drooped as he watched WX blankly.

"...what are you doing?" 

He blinked up at me, a twinge of annoyance showing through. "SOMETHING," he muttered, turning back to his work. I picked up one of the carved birchnuts by his side. It was incredibly well-made and unmistakably a Chess piece- a rook to be more specific.

"...you're carving Chess pieces?" 

"YOU'D BE SURPRISED WHAT YOU DO WHEN YOU GET BORED," he replied without looking back up.

I cringed. I remembered last time I got bored, and it did not end well. Shaking the thought away, I glanced at Webber. "What are you doing?"

"Watching," he mumbled. "Is that honey?" I nodded and he let out a relieved sigh. "Thank goodness. Our arm was really beginning to hurt." I raised my brow.

"Can I check it...?"

"Please do." He grimaced. "We didn't feel it much at first, but it aches now. Where did you get so good at doctoring?" He asked, lifting his arm so show me the gash.

"My father was a doctor," I replied absentmindedly. "He crammed knowledge at me since I was little. That's actually what got me into being a scientist. Medical science was fascinating."

"Guess it's a good thing he did so. We have no clue where we would be if you were as clueless as us." I shook my head slowly, letting out a flustered noise. "Is it that bad?" 

"Well... it's infected. Just as I was afraid of. Hopefully the honey will help."

"IS IT LETHAL?" I jumped out of my skin as WX piped up behind me. _Is he concerned?_

"No, not if I can get it treated quick enough," I told him without looking back. "If I'm gonna fix this, I'll have to clean it up a bit. Is that okay? It'll hurt, but it'll feel better in the long run."

Webber nodded.

"I'll be right back. WX, do you have any extra birchnuts? Any large ones?"

"INDEED." He dragged his backpack- another thing he appeared with without explanation- closer to him and opened it up, revealing that it was nearly full of the large seeds, then promptly produced two tree nuts.

"Thank you." I snatched up a piece of flint and made my way towards where the frog ponds were. By this time, dusk was beginning to fall. On the way, I took the time to carefully carve out the inside of the tree nuts. Much to my relief, no frogs were out of the ponds. I filled the makeshift cups then returned to camp to boil the water and hopefully kill whatever toxins lived in it. Upon returning to base, I noted that WX had apparently finished his Chess carvings, and was building up the fire, while Webber gazed into the dancing flames, his muscles stiff as though preparing for the worst. They both looked up as I rushed into the clearing, and WX quickly handed me a few large leaves, but refused to meet my gaze as though he was embarrassed. Amusement bubbled up inside of me at his gesture, but I had to admit it was quite kind of him- a complete change from how he was the day before.

The sun had gone down by the time I determined the water was safe. Using the leaves WX gave me, I cleaned Webber's wound in the firelight. The spider had his eyes shut tightly and his jaws clenched, but luckily did not flinch as I expected him to. "Are you done?" He asked through gritted teeth as I fixed the poultice over the gash.

"Yeah, that's it."

He visibly relaxed and breathed out in relief. "It feels so much better... thank you Wilson."

"No problem. It just needed some proper care."

He smiled, then yawned, causing me to yawn as well.

"FLESHLINGS NEED THEIR SLEEP," WX advised, a hint of sneer back in his voice.

I mentally chortled. _Well, he's back I guess. Not sure exactly what that was about...although... that was an awfully non-sinister thing he said. Maybe he just likes to pretend he's a jerk. Maybe he's really nice on the inside._

I nearly burst out laughing at this thought. Some part of me highly doubted that was the case. I nodded sleepily, then lay down by the fire. It felt like it had been awhile since I had slept.. _Tomorrow I'll go explore a bit... maybe find that birchnut forest WX was talking about._

 _I could leave them alone just for a little bit..._

 _Right?_


	5. Chapter 5 Playing Nice

_**A/N:**_ **That feel... when you realize that even the original Chapter 5 was nothing but a glorified Chess match...**

 **That feel... when you realize all Don't Starve is is a glorified Chess match...**

 **BUT ANYWAY, yeah... here's your helping heaping of glorified Chess match... enjoy! XD**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __ _Come on spider. Just one more stupid move. One more stupid move and you'll be dead. Victory will finally be mine. Just you wait. I see where you are looking... yes... yes fall into my trap!_

Webber looked up at me with a smug grin as though he realized what I was about to do. He then ruined my plan entirely by looking elsewhere and sliding his bishop across the board that had been drawn in the dirt. "We believe that is a check?" He asked, still with his annoying smirk.

 _Get the stupid bishop!_ I though furiously. _The darned things have taken me out_ twice _in a row!_ I was hopelessly confused though, and I noticed Webber's eyes light up as they scoured the board. "Check...mate?"

Wilson had left earlier in the day to go find the birchnut forest I had found the birchnuts in. Frustrated as I was that he had taken the book from me, I had to admit he was putting it to good use. I thought long and hard about the conversation we had prior to his adventure as Webber began to set up the pieces again.

 _"We'd better be careful... I've been looking through this thing."_ He had flipped through a few pages of the black book, his brow furrowed in worry. _"There are these... monsters... they are labeled as 'giants'."_ He had proceeded to tell us what the five main ones were. _"The first one is the one we'd have to worry about now. It's called the Bearger... it's big."_ He had warned. _"Like... very big. It has enormous claws and oily black and white fur. It only comes out of hibernation during the autumn though._

 _"The second one seems even more dangerous. It's called the Deerclops. It's bigger than even the Bearger, and can freeze you! Its hands are like claws and it has thick, gray fur across the length of its whole body. Its antlers could also do damage if it bucks at you. This one comes during the Winter._

 _"The third one comes out during the spring, and it's called the Moose Goose. It is most likely the largest of them all. As you can tell by her name, she looks like a large goose with antlers. Her moslings are dangerous as well._ " I remembered this detail specifically well because I remembered thinking _Are you telling me babies are stronger than the fully grown mother?_

 _"The fourth one... the fourth one is a summer dweller. She's called the Dragonfly. She's not as big as some of the others, but she has claws that could impale you on accident, and fire at her clawtips. She is the most territorial and the most protective of her young._

 _"The last one is called the Ancient Guardian but..."_ He had flipped through the pages again, sighing as he reached one page that looked like it had been burned out minus the name 'Ancient Guardian' at the top of the scroll. _"I don't know anything about it. It looks like someone destroyed it, but I don't know why they would. It seems pointless."_

"Uh hey, you ready to get your butt kicked at Chess again or are you gonna sit there all day looking off into space?" The spider waved his hands over the game. "We're completely fine with default winning- just so you know."

"WHAT? NO! JUST... MAKE YOUR MOVE."

"Okay, you asked for it." He looked at the board for a few moments then looked back up at me. "Actually, why don't you go first? You haven't so far... maybe it's giving us an unfair advantage?" He grinned as though he really did not believe that, he just really wanted me to make the first move. Suspicious of his intent, I scanned my data banks for any idea of a good first move in Chess. _All the intelligent of a super computer can't help me it seems!_ I thought, exasperated, as nothing came up. I did a simple King Pawn opening. _And I really hate the smug look he has... it's like he can read my mind..._

Literally four moves later I was caught in another checkmate. I stared, gaping, at it. "HOW-"

"We had a life before all of this, ya' know. We're surprised, if we are honest without ourself, how well our Chess skills remained intact after... well, you know."

There was a few minutes of silence between us.

"...YOU HAVE TO SHOW ME HOW TO DO THAT..."

"What? The four-move checkmate?"

"...MAYBE..."

"So it's easier to do it if you are the starting player..." He pointed to the pawn in front of his King. "King Pawn, you know that, right?" I nodded, interested. "Okay, move it forwards twice." I did so, and he mirrored me. "Move your white-squared bishop so it threatens this pawn on our side." He tapped the top of the pawn in front of his black-squared bishop, then as I moved it he brought his knight out in a typical opening. "Move your queen four squares diagonally so it is attacking the same pawn from the corner." He took his other knight out. "Take out the pawn and there you go." He leaned back. "Checkmate."

"WHERE DID YOU LEARN THAT?"

"It's called the Scholar's Mate... our father taught us." He paused for a second, his gaze clouding in sorrow, then sighed. "He was fantastic at this game..." He shook his head as though dismissing old memories. "You're only supposed to be able to do it as white... we learned how to change it to work as black though." He lifted the black king and palmed it for a moment before closing his fingers tightly over the carved piece.

"YOU HAVE A LOT OF HISTORY... FOR A MEATSACK."

He smiled lightly as though I had complemented him, though he still had the underlying grief he had seconds before. Then he straightened, wiping his face of any other emotion than his calm smugness of beating me several times. At this moment, I wasn't even sure if he was purposely looking smug or his cracked jaw was making him look that way.

He reminded me too much of my captor.

 _"Say pal, you look like you're in some trouble... I believe I know a way that can get you out of this predicament, but you'll have to trust me."_

 _Trust him!_ My thoughts scoffed. _What was I thinking? How desperate could I have been to listen to a_ radio?

 _And he had that very look on his face._

 _"_ COULD YOU PL-" _was I about to resort to kindness?_ "WIPE THAT STUPID GRIN OFF YOUR FACE."

"We have _no_ idea what you're talking about," he sneered, but did manage to change his expression to just a plain grin. "Happy now?"

"I WOULD HAVE SMACKED IT OFF BUT I FIND IT UNFAIR TO ATTACK THE _CRIPPLED_."

"Uh-huh, and why is that?" He sounded completely disinterested.

"IF THE BEST A ROBOT CAN DO IS ATTACK SOMEONE WHO CAN'T FIGHT BACK IF HE WANTED TO, IT'S JUST PATHETIC. IT'S A MATTER OF PRESERVING SELF-PRIDE. NOT A MATTER OF ANY KINDNESS ON MY PART."

"Ooh, someone is defensive about... something we didn't ask about? You trying to convince us or yourself?" 

Slightly disturbed by the way he just seemed to look right through me, I frowned. "YOU, MEATSACK."

He tipped his head slightly as though about to say something, but he stopped before he did, whiskers twitching. "Hey Wilson, find the trees you were looking for?" The kid asked into the brush around our campsite. As the scientist made himself shown, he waved his hands over the game again. "You'd be proud to know that WX only threatened us once and it wasn't even death. You should be proud."

"And how many times did you threaten him?" He asked. He had an armful of the birchnuts. _They're probably edible,_ I mused.

"None!" He protested, scowling. His expression changed for a moment. "Shoot, just remembered... you still don't know how to gut an animal, do you?"

Wilson stopped in his tracks. "Not... particularly..."

"You still have one of my rabbits?"

"...yes..."

"Bring it over here." I saw a shudder pass through Wilson's body- he obviously held no want to prepare an animal- but he did as Webber said anyway. I flinched as Webber suddenly brandished a very sharp and very was-not-there-before knife.

"WHERE ON EARTH DID YOU GET THAT THING?"

He looked vaguely confused. "What's- nevermind. To put it bluntly, we made it. As you said, WX, you get _very_ bored sitting around doing nothing all day..."

I had to admit I was pretty impressed. At first glance, it looked like a real knife. But with closer examination, one could determine that- it was in fact- hand crafted. The blade was not tied, but had been wedged into the smooth wood of the handle. There were small carved dents in it and it took me a second to realize that he had specifically designed it to fit him. "It's not sharp enough to hunt with, but we made it to prepare meat."

To be honest, I didn't know either, so I decided to watch. (Of course, I wasn't about to let him know he knew something I didn't)

Unlike his Scholar's Mate display, he said nothing in a silent demonstration. He mercilessly sliced the rabbit's head and paws off, making Wilson look a tiny-bit sick. It wasn't until he actually unzipped the animal that I started to feel sick as well. He still didn't look concerned in the slightest bit, ignoring our horrified looks and the blood that was staining the rabbit's brown pelt red. He paused for a moment during the actual cleaning though. "Are we just talking about the meat part or are we expected to show you the wonderful biology of a rabbit?" To my eyes, all of the intestines looked the same- _pink and squishy and just_ disgusting- but he seemed to be able to tell the difference well enough. "Well, the heart and liver tend to be edible-"

"Don't you think about it," Wilson warned.

"Neither of you have proper survival instincts!" He taunted, but discarded the insides anyway. "You both look like you swallowed a whole frog. Trust us! It'll be worth it! WX, we're not going to lie. If you weren't a robot, you'd probably be puking right now."

I felt like I wanted to despite my distinct lack of the organs required to do so.

"You'll both see. We can't survive off of berries forever." He grinned at me. "It'll be you two doing it next."

When neither of us replied, he sighed and stuck his now bloodied dagger in the ground. "Fine. But we aren't going to be the one to feed you two. Wilson, you should know above all of us you _can't_ survive without meat."

 _Protein._ I mentally corrected. _But he's right._ I echoed his sigh. "GIVE ME THE OTHER RABBIT."


	6. Chapter 6 Treacherous Thinking

_**A/N:**_ **Ah... juggling this a One True Heir... ah, the glory of having to remember all these personalities. Also, if you guys haven't checked out OTH (OTH... not a bad acronym...) it's pretty neat ;P**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"I haven't seen much fighting from you two lately," I commented to WX. We were traveling through the grasslands where the bees were, more enjoying the weather than actually doing something productive. The robot shrugged.

"IT WOULD BE PATHETIC OF ME TO ATTACK A CRIPPLED CHILD," he murmured. "DESPITE THE FACT THAT I WOULD WISH TO. IT WOULD BE STOOPING TO A... _WEAK_ LEVEL. ALL I AM SAYING IS I AM BETTER THAN THAT." He examined his hands closely. The night before he had accidentally slashed apart the metal on his right palm, but it seemed to have started to heal by some form of... dare I say it... _magic_. _Perhaps there is a scientific explanation to it._ The rational part of my mind rambled. _Perhaps the world is stuck in a sort of permanent flux that causes things that would not normally happen in our world to be normal._

Whether is was this or just he was doing something behind the scenes was beyond me. Either way he seemed rather pleased as the condition of the wound. He cupped his hands together before continuing. "WHEN DO YOU THINK HE'LL BE WALKING AGAIN?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Walking? I'm not sure... but _fighting_ , that'll be awhile."

"I SAID NOTHING ABOUT FIGHTING."

"You were thinking it."

"I HIGHLY DOUBT THE LIKES OF YOU COULD UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEXITY OF THE MECHANICAL MIND."

I stifled a snort of laughter, which earned me a glare. "I'm sorry, you don't seem particularly... advanced."

"IF YOU HAD ANY IDEA OF MY ORIGINS, YOU WOULDN'T EVEN DARE SUGGEST THAT I AM TECHNOLOGICALLY IMPAIRED."

"I'm not suggesting you are technologically impaired," I protested. "I'm just saying the way you speak doesn't suggest you are of any greatest intelligence than we are."

"YOU ARE SAYING I AM OF YOUR LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE? AND HOW IS THAT NOT TECHNOLOGICALLY IMPAIRED EXACTLY?"

I sighed. "Look. Maybe we should get off of this topic and back to the one at hand."

"RIGHT."

"Now I have to admit, he seems to be healing remarkably fast. It might be another factor of this world, such as the ability for you to heal. It seems to be in the same vein. Honestly, I'd love to do some more research on this world."

"I DON'T PLAN ON BEING HERE LONG ENOUGH TO FIND MUCH OUT ABOUT IT."

"Or perhaps this isn't another world?" I went on thoughtfully. "WX, have you considered the possibility of this being a dream?"

"HAVE YOU CONSIDERED THE POSSIBILITY OF _SHUTTING UP_ ANYTIME SOON?"

"Oh- sorry."

"ABOUT TIME," he muttered under his breath as a moment of silence went by.

 _Still. Perhaps it_ is _just a simulation. Did someone hook me up to some sort of dream machine to examine my behavior in a scientifically illiterate world such as this? That would explain Webber... and the super fast healing. Wait no... that can't be. I got stung by a bee earlier... and it_ hurt!I felt a headache coming on. _Uhg... I'm just one person. I can't hope to discover this world's secrets so easily by myself, and the likelihood of one of the other two helping is just about as likely as them becoming like, best friends so... yeah, that's not gonna happen anytime soon._

A noise far off in the distance caught my attention. "Hey... did you hear that?"

He snapped his gaze to me, looking frustrated that I, yet again, tried talking to him, and he opened his mouth to snap at me when he slammed it shut as the noise pierced the air again. "WHAT IS THAT?" He whispered.

"Hounds," I hissed through gritted teeth.

"...HOUNDS?"

"Yes _hounds_! Get your weapon out!" Slightly confused, the robot brought out his wood-chopping axe while I brandished a makeshift spear that I had been working on before I left earlier that day and stood back-to-back with him. "Come fight me you brutes!" I challenged as the howls grew louder and nearer.

The beasts became visible; a group of black beasts larger than any other dog breed I had ever seen with lolling pink tongues and sharp white teeth that reflected the sun. There were only four luckily, but that didn't subtract from the fact that they were _big_ and _probably_ wanted to eat us.

As the first one leaped towards my neck, I raised the spear and its own inertia buried the sharp end into it's shoulder. It howled and dropped back, snarling. Behind me, I heard the sickening _crack_ of WX smashing the axe into one's head, and spraying us all in blood. I let out a noise of protest just as another one of the aggressors lunged forward and ripped the spear out of my hand. WX instantly saw my danger and swung his axe in a wide arc before cracking it across its neck. My assumption was that the fourth one had fled to a distinct lack of fourth hound.

"Is that it?" I wondered aloud. "It sounded like there was more."

"THERE MOST LIKELY IS MORE." A wild grin spread across his face.

"What do you-" I cut myself off, catching his meaning with a slightly panicked feel. " _Webber!_ "

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __I waited a few seconds after Wilson disappeared to follow. My mind was no particular rush, but I found my feet carrying me faster until I, too, was running. _Calm down!_ I silently yelled at myself. _It's just the kid!_ Naturally, my mind was completely ignored.

To be honest, I really should have expected the sight I saw when I got back to camp, although I couldn't help a pang of relief- _No! That's not relief... is disappointment!_ I thought furiously. Apparently I missed something though, because, quite amusingly, Wilson had done something to tick him off.

"We had it under control!" The spider protested as I broke through the tree line.

"There was four hounds! WX and I had to take two each!"

The look on Webber's face resembled that of someone who had bitten into something foul. Wilson let out a heavy sigh as though trying not to start something, then turned to see me standing behind him. "You got here awfully quickly," he commented. "You know, for someone who walked and doesn't care."

"HONESTLY. I DIDN'T RUN HERE TO CHECK ON HIM," I huffed. "I RAN BECAUSE I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD. ESPECIALLY IF HE HAD TO TAKE ON FOUR HIMSELF... BEING CRIPPLED AND ALL."

"We didn't even attack them." Webber snorted with a hint of laughter. "They just sat there staring at us until Wilson appeared. Still uneeded, by the way."

"There was no telling if they were actually going to attack you!"

"They were cowards. Don't get me wrong, we're flattered you two care." His voice dripped with sarcasm.

" _HE_ CARES."

"You care too," he replied instantly in a sing-song voice.

He didn't even flinch a I took a threatening step towards him.

"Did you just wake up?" Wilson asked, apparently trying to abruptly change the subject.

"We've been awake for an hour or two. Been completely bored though because... well, there's not much to do when you can walk. Next time you guys leave us, bring like, a couple of rabbits or something so we can do something productive, because you two still get queasy about gutting an animal."

"I DO NOT GET 'QUEASY'. SUCH A FEELING CANNOT EXIST FOR ME," I lied slightly. It was true it _should_ not exist, but I was pretty sure that the feeling I had when he showed us how to prepare a rabbit was reminiscent to the feeling of queasiness.

"Whatever you say, WX. You aren't the best at lying, by the way, but we'll pretend we can't notice if that makes you feel better."

I scowled at him, but before I could retort Wilson stepped between us, completely ignoring the fact we were having a very nice discussion. He said nothing against either of us, and instead raised a hand and looked at me. "You heard him. Wanna go hunting?"

I nodded, thankful for something to do, though burning silently inside. _As if I actually care what happens to him_. _Well..._ I shifted uncomfortably. _I don't want him dead..._

 _Yes I do! That is my whole purpose! I can't let it down!_

 _I've already let it down._ A surge of pure fury shot through me directed towards the kid. _And it's all your fault! If it finds out that I'm growing attached to_ fleshlings _..._ I shivered, personally not wanting to go through that. _I'll be killed... right on the spot. All because of you..._


	7. Chapter 7 Insanity!

_**Webber's POV**_

 __Sanity was a very tedious thing to keep when you're surrounded by creatures who live to kill you... and even more so when you are nearly unable to fight back. We had lived alone for such a long time, though, we had expected it not to hit us nearly as hard... the warning of insanity wasn't even something we had time or patience to worry about. It seemed like such a minor threat in the grand scheme of things...

Perhaps it was the terrifying encounter with the tree guard finally catching up to us? Perhaps it was the knowledge of how if something wanted to kill us, we could not run. With so many possible factors and such a lack of other things to think about, you'd think that the concept would have been planned or even considered.

It wasn't.

We didn't even realize what was happening at the time. After a particularly bad dream which the details of we couldn't correctly grasp, we awoke to near darkness. Wilson was asleep, though he looked rather uncomfortable, and WX- who didn't need sleep- was watching the dying flames of the fire with a sort of fondness that suggested it would be a terrible idea to disturb him. We flinched at the own sound of our ragged breathing as we struggled to calm our racing heart. The undisturbed terror of seemingly nothing should have been a clear indicator of what was soon to happen. It took us a moment to realize _what_ exactly had sent us into such a panic.

It was the _shadows_.

No, these weren't ordinary shadows. These shadows had eyes. Cold, callous, viciously hungry eyes. They didn't make any move to lunge at us, though. They just sort of... watched. We could sense that these eyes held billions of thoughts. They were most certainly sentient. They all blinked, together, slowly, like they all belonged to the same monstrous beast. We shifted closer to the fire to the best of our ability without moving our damaged legs _too much_. WX didn't pay any attention. The sky was hesitatingly turning lighter on the horizon, and the very second the new sunlight touched the eyes they vanished, revealing nothing but the peaceful woods that surrounded the camp. We bit our lip uncertainly. The uncertainty didn't last long because the next thing to strike was a splitting headache. We quickly shut our eyes from the light, but it didn't help. It only made it worse as scenes began to play out through our head.

 _Us, alone, in the middle of winter and soaked with blood._

 _A blue blade._

 _Fire licking the woods around us._

 _A clawed hand; a wicked grin._

 _A wail of piercing grief._

 _A golden crown._

 _Fear._

 _Blood._

 _Death._

 _Darkness._

 _\_ The unconscious part of our mind knew it was insanity... the rest of us was too terrified to listen. Memories were flashing faster than we could process them.

 _A cry for help._

 _A scarring betrayal._

 _Emptiness._

It fell away almost suddenly, leaving us gasping for breath like we had just emerged from deep water. This seemed to catch the robot's attention. He glanced at us as we inched our hand toward our head. He sort of froze as though trying to figure out what the heck was happening. Our migraine began to subside, so WX shrugged and turned back to the fire without a word.

It was still bad enough, however, that the second we felt the hand on our shoulder we yelped and nearly slashed Wilson, who flinched back at our violent reaction.

" _Ah!_ Webber! It's me!" He shouted as though we didn't realize.

"Oh.. sorry."

"LOOKS LIKE THE WORLD'S FINALLY GETTING TO HIM," WX commented with a hint of a sneer in his voice.

"Stop," he snapped, glaring at the robot. "You're not impressing anyone."

"I'M NOT TRYING TO IMPRESS ANYONE," WX retorted. "I WAS MERELY STATING A SIMPLE FACT."

Wilson ignored this and shifted a few paces closer. "Are you _okay_?"

We clenched our teeth and shook our head, the headache beginning to return. _Ugh... what_ is _this?_ "It hurts..."

"What does?"

"...everything."

The scientist's brow furrowed with concern, but before he could say anything else something dark behind him rose up with a silent roar. "Watch out!" I yelped, throwing our arms over our head andshaking slightly. Wilson instinctively ducked and rolled to the side.

But the blow we expected never came. We dared to peek over our arm to see that whatever monster had been about to attack us had disappeared into thin air. We stared at the empty air for a second, our jaw hanging open. "Unfair!" I protested. "There was something there, we swear!"

Wilson frowned, dusting himself off. He said nothing, but after a few seconds of him examining us with concern in his gray eyes he reached forward and put his hand on our forehead. We stifled a hiss of fear at the sudden movement, but he paid little attention and drew back. "You're burning up," he sighed. "That's probably what's wrong..." His gaze flicked to our arm and back.

"AWW, WHAT'S WRONG? LITTLE KID _SICK_?"

 _...I'm probably running a fever_ because _I'm seeing things... like that's logical._

"WX, if you're going to be like that, the least you can do is go hunting or something."

WX stood to his full height instantly. "I'M _NOT_ GOING TO BE GUTTING _ANY_ ANIMALS!" He protested. "WITH THE FURRY HALF-BREED OVER HERE OUT OF THE EQUATION, WHO DO YOU THINK WILL BE _DOING_ THE DIRTY STUFF AROUND HERE?"

 _Half-breed!_ If we weren't crippled, that probably would have been enough provocation to attack him again. We opened our mouth to snap at him, but shut it abruptly as Wilson gave both of us the 'glare-of-death'. "You," he pointed towards WX. "Out there." He pointed to an area where be unexplored farther out. The robot scowled at us but said nothing as he stomped away. "Hey, will you be alright on your own?" Wilson lowered his voice and crouched to become eye-to-eye with us.

We nodded, brushing away the beads of sweat forming on our forehead. "We'll just... sleep or... something..."

He patted our shoulder, smiling. "Hopefully WX and I will be able to get you back on your feet soon."

"Hope and truth are two different things," I muttered, too quiet for the scientist to hear.

"I'll go explore a bit towards the way we were going when the hounds attacked. I _should_ be back before dark..."

"And as for WX?"

He shrugged. "You know him... not much I can do."

"Good point... well, good luck... like I said we'll just... catch up on our sleeping." To show him we would, we stretched and lied into a more comfortable position. He chortled lightly.

"See you soon."

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __Perhaps I should have been paying more attention. Perhaps I should have been thinking less of my predicament with the two rivals and more of the fact I knew next to nothing about this land. The book helped, but it couldn't describe just how awful the creatures really were, as evidenced by the hound attack. Of course, go figure, it never occurred to me to pay _that_ close attention.

It wasn't until the beast was close enough for the entire world to shake in its presence that I realized I had just made a terrible, terrible, _terrible_ mistake. And in the wilderness... any mistake can be fatal. At first, I was confused, thinking that there was an earthquake. _If that is the case that means that this world has plates, which means it has fault lines, which means that this area should be affected more by these earthquakes and I can almost guarantee that a simulation could contain such physics._

Before I could even comprehend what was happening the forest around me gave a giant heave, and the tree nearest to me was cut clean through, slid and fell with an earsplitting crash. With the leaves and branches now gone from their spot, the monster was presented clearly to me.

Its bottom fur was almost entirely black with the occasional hint of silver mixed in. Long white fur was draped over its shoulders and down its back almost like a natural cape. The sunlight glinted off of its soulless white eyes, sharp, needle-like teeth, and a white stripe that parted the black fur on its head. And it. Was. Massive. It was slightly bigger than the trees and ripped away undergrowth like it was made of paper. It paused for just a second in its rampage when it met my gaze.

 _The Bearger..._ I thought in horror. It dropped onto all fours and roared at me so loudly I was temporarily deafened, then lashed out a huge paw and hitting me hard enough to send me into a tree. I wasn't hit by its claws, but it was still a painful collision. The oddest thing happened after that. The second I was out of its way, its snarl dropped and it continued its way through the forest. I lay still, panting against the tree and waiting until the artificial earthquake died away before trying to stand. I let out a gasp of pain as I put pressure on my right leg, then nearly smacked myself. _For crying out loud, are we all destined to get beat down until we can't do anything anymore?_ I thought furiously. I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm my racing heart, then started to limp home.


	8. Chapter 8 Damaged

_**WX-78'S POV**_

I knew that something like this would happen soon. It was inevitable. Fleshlings weren't created to be able to withstand as much as a machine. This is the very reason I was not at all surprised to hear of the damaging effect Wilson's encounter with one of the very beasts he warned Webber and me about. What I was surprised about, however, was how it hardly seemed to have an effect on his mental state given how tedious sanity was for them. _Or perhaps it's just a problem that the half-breed has_ , my mind sneered. It was dusk by this point, so the fire was up. Webber's gaze was remote, fixed on the dancing flames reflected in his blank eyes. Wilson was nearer to the flickering light, his pant leg pulled up as he examined the damage that the bearger had done to his leg. The worst I saw was blood smeared which was obvious to tell due to the fact all his clothes beneath his waist were stained red. "Could be worse..." he murmured to himself.

"WHAT WERE YOU EXPECTING?"

"More than a couple of scrapes," he admitted. "I'm not complaining of course, but the force that beast hit me... it should have at least _fractured_ something." He glanced at Webber and sighed. "Which makes it even more shocking the amount of damage he took from the tree guard... I thought the giants would be the worst possible scenario, but if the Bearger is somehow weaker than the trees..." He looked wearily at the pines around us. "I don't know how we'll be able to do anything without worrying about something attacking us," he muttered.

"THERE'S TWO OF US." He glared at me. "FINE. _THREE_ OF US, THOUGH, YOU CAN HARDLY COUNT _HIM_. YOU COULD SIMPLY PUT YOUR SUPPOSED INTELLIGENCE TO THE TEST AND SET UP SOMETHING WHERE ONE OF US CAN LOOK FOR TROUBLE WHILE THE OTHERS WORK." I shrugged. "UNLESS YOU DON'T LIKE TAKING ADVICE FROM THE... 'LESSER BEING'." _If some part of you truly believes you are smarter than the one whose mind is comparable to that of a super computer_ , I added silently. He frowned.

"I never called you lesser," he protested. "I said you were probably close to our intelligence. You were the one who took it as an insult."

I huffed and said nothing else. Wilson sighed and shook his head, but didn't add anything, which I quite appreciated until the silence grew almost awkward as he fiddled with the fire.

"YOU CONCERNED ABOUT THE KID?" I asked, hoping to at least break the silence. His gaze shot up to meet mine.

"Of course!" He exclaimed. "He seems to be the only one who knows _anything_ about the outside world. Unless," He added mischievously. " _you_ are totally okay with gutting animals like he is?"

I looked away instantly, and I heard him let out a peal of laughter. "I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH SKINNING _ANY_ SORT OF FLESHLING," I huffed pointedly. For some reason my barely concealed threat only made him laugh harder. "WHAT IS _SO FUNNY_?"

"I know you are completely serious right now," he managed between laughs, "but I know very well you would die in less than a day if you ever did kill Webber or I. And you know it too."

 _...Stupid scientist._ Instead of saying this out loud, I opted to instead ignore it, turning back to look at the dying fire, and the way the spider's weirdly blank eyes reflected it. "WHAT DO YOU THINK IS WRONG WITH HIM?" I tried, and Wilson started laughing _again_.

"For someone who _doesn't care_ you sure do seem to _care_ quite a bit," he snickered. "but all jeering aside, I'm not completely sure." He rubbed the back of his head uncertainly. "I can't tell if he's hallucinating because of the fever or if he has the fever because he's hallucinating... I can't even tell why he would have a fever or hallucinations in the first place! Unless the infection in his arm has gotten worse, which I can't really tell because every time I try to get near him he nearly claws my face off. I wish I had the proper tools to give him proper healthcare. I really do. But it looks like we'll have to work with what we've got." He grabbed one of the hollowed-out birchnuts he had been storing water in and started washing the scrapes and contusions across his own leg, gritting his teeth as though it hurt. "It was holding back," he realized out loud, meeting my gaze. "It wasn't actually trying to hurt me. This... _this_..." He motioned wildly to his injured leg. "This is _nothing_ compared to what it _could_ have done to me."

"WHAT WAS THE WORST IT COULD HAVE DONE?"

He was silent for a few moments. "It probably could have severed my entire leg," he murmured softly. "if it didn't kill me first." The next couple of quiet moments seemed to last forever before Wilson seemed to crack under it and continued talking. "WX... just a question... which injuries did you inflict?" I turned sharply to stare at him, confused. "I really need to know. I know you and Webber fought before you two were attacked, but which wounds did _you_ inflict and which ones did the _tree guard_ inflict?"

"...WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?" I demanded.

He raised his chin slightly. "Because I'll need to keep a closer eye on the tree guard injuries. They are more likely to get infected than anything you could deal out, plus I need to go over them for wooden shrapnel."

A couple more insanity-inducing moments of silence between us. "HIS RIBS WERE PROBABLY MY DOING. AS WAS HIS JAW."

"Everything you did was blunt force?"

"INDEED."

He groaned, burying his face in his hands as he finished cleaning his bloodied leg and muttering "I'll have to check all of his open wounds then. He will most certainly not be happy."

"IF HE'LL EVEN LET YOU NEAR HIM," I huffed. "IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED, HE'S A BIT... DELUSIONAL RIGHT NOW."

"Oh, I've noticed." He gave me a wry look. "Which is exactly why I said he's not going to be happy." His eyes drifted to the black book he always kept with him. "Maybe the book has something to say about this. This is _definitely_ not normal behavior."

"I'M NOT SURPRISED HE'S SHOWING ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR. AFTER ALL... HE'S NOT EXACTLY WHAT YOU WOULD CALL A 'NORMAL' SPECIMEN."

"None of us are," he laughed lightly. "I mean... _you_ aren't exactly the most 'normal' specimen either, WX." I opened my mouth to protest but he continued. "You are a robot," he reminded me.

"A ROBOT. IT'S NOT UNUSUAL."

"On the contrary, you are quite high-tech compared to the kinds of robots I saw in my hometown." Wilson paused as though it was uncomfortable to talk about it. "Well... actually, I don't even recall seeing robots. I knew they existed but..."

"I'M THE FIRST YOU'VE SEEN?" That was unusual. Where I was built, robots where _all_ you saw. I couldn't even remember any human contact until recently...

"Definitely. Especially a robot that apparently functions exactly like a human? I have to admit, you are quite interesting." He smiled. "Would if mind if one of these days, when we have nothing to do, I did a few... experiments with you?"

"YES. I MIND VERY MUCH. I AM NOT A TOOL FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT."

"Oh you're no fun," he pouted. "Away with you." He looked away and waved me off. "You suck the joy out of everything."

"OH FINE. I'LL JUST GO DO SOMETHING USEFUL AND HOPEFULLY NOT GET ATTACKED BY SOME RANDOM MONSTER I SHOULD'VE HEARD A MILE AWAY."

"You really are just a big killjoy."

"I'M NOT A KILLJOY," I protested. "I AM, IN FACT, TRYING TO BE PRACTICAL."

He rolled his eyes. "Go explore or something... try to bring food back!"

"MEAT?" I asked.

"No no no, not unless you are up to gutting it." He pointed with his thumb back at Webber as he stood up, resting his weight on his good leg. "He's the only one okay with it at this point. And we don't even know what's wrong with him."

I glanced back at the woods. "YOU LOOK IN THAT PRECIOUS BOOK OF YOURS AND I'LL GO OUT THEN?"

He sighed but nodded. "You know what would be useful? Bandages. If we had _any_ sort of bandages."

I shrugged. "I DON'T THINK YOU'LL BE ABLE TO FIND THOSE IN THE WILDERNESS."

"I know but... if you can find anything we could possibly wrap wounds up with that'd be great."

"I DOUBT I WILL... BUT I GUESS THERE'S NO HARM IN TRYING."

"Ah, much appreciated- and you're not listening anymore." he chortled a bit as I turned around to walk away before he could continue speaking. _Moronic fleshlings- love the sound of their own voice until they annoy everyone else._

I was honestly beyond glad when I was finally out of speaking range. _If he keeps this up I'm going to either be deaf by the end of this or wish I was deaf._

In a slight daze, I let my mind wander aimlessly. I wasn't as curious about how I got here- as Wilson was- and more interested in how I could _get out_. Truthfully, I had no clue what this place was but I didn't really care so long as I could get back to the real world... to _my_ world. The physics here were a bit too wonky and unusual for my liking. _A robot likes pristine order. There is nothing orderly about this world. I suppose that's the wilderness for you, but it doesn't mean I have to like it._ As if to prove my point of the wonky physics, I felt a sudden wave of heat pass over me even though, when I looked up, the sky had turned overcast. Ahead I could almost swear I saw the forest thinning out, and I moved quicker until I began to run towards the light, before emerging to an almost blinding brightness.

The ground had quickly gone from slightly dewy and soft underfoot to cracked and dry. Sand covered the ground as far as the eye could see, which was far considering the lack of trees. In their place were cacti placed randomly all over the flat area, and as I watched a herd of some strange, blue creatures with lightning-bolt shaped horns bounded into view, looking as though they were chewing on something despite there being no grass to chew on. _What are they eating? Sand?_

To the other side, a small rabbit was creeping out from the edge of the forest, eyeing the blue creatures suspiciously and I wondered for a small moment if they were deadly before an absolutely _massive_ bird swooped from the sky and lunged towards it with outstretched talons, causing the animal to flee for cover with a high-pitched scream. The bird let out a despairing _caw_! before taking off again with two powerful strokes of its feathery wings. _A desert_ , my mind unhelpfully supplied as I took in the new surroundings. I let my gaze rest on the blue creatures. _I can probably ask Wilson about those things when I get back... knowing his obsession with that stupid book he'd know what they are... and if they're edible._

Another part I hated about this world, admittedly, was my newfound need to eat. I had never needed to before and now it was almost unbearable.

I officially hated yet _another_ thing that made me more similar to these _pests_.

 _You know you'd be terrified without them,_ a small, annoying voice whispered... one I recognized well.

 _Oh, shut up. I'm not dependent on any life-form._

As though the universe wanted to make matters worse while simultaneously throwing me out of my thoughts, an enormous thunderclap echoed overhead, and I glanced curiously up to look at the sky. I had never been out in rain before, so I could only begin to imagine what it felt like.

A sharp, stinging sensation shot up and down my spine as something hit me right in the base of my neck.

 _ZAP!_

It was weird how just a single drop of water caused an entire shower of sparks to fly out of me.

Yep, I was _not_ built to be out in the rain.

 _ZAP!_

Nearly scrabbling to get away, back into the shelter of the trees and away from the offending _liquid._

 _ZAP!_

Well, at least this was another barrier between me and fleshlings.

 _ZAP!_

I didn't mean I had to like it.

By the time I had run all the way back, I was positively soaked and glowing like a Christmas tree from the sparks. Wilson had to cover his eyes and mouth to keep from laughing, and I was gladder than ever that Webber was still too out of it to say anything. I narrowed my 'eyes' at the scientist as soon as he peeked over his hand, and he shook his head, lifting his other hand to show me his dripping palms. "I'm not saying a word. Not saying a word."


	9. Chapter 9 A Little Rain Must Fall

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __It was much more difficult than it should have been, but I managed to keep a straight face about WX's predicament. I wanted to laugh. I wanted to laugh so hard he would probably backhand me, but it didn't help that he sat helplessly with his backpack over his head to help shield from the rain and he was glaring at me with the most rage he could muster in a single look.

Honestly, I felt that I was showing great self-restraint given the circumstances.

However, I _was_ having some problems searching through the book without ruining its precious information-loaded pages with the merciless rain. The short time I was given to search through it before the rains started gave me just enough time to discover that Webber's problem was, indeed, his sanity. _There is no cure for insanity,_ I had thought with a sigh. _Back in my world, people would throw the insane into an asylum and forget they existed... using them as lab rats._ The book had other ideas, though. _This is impossible! Picking flowers? Being near a random monster in the birchnut forest? Eating_ mushrooms? _What is_ wrong _with this world? It breaks just about every law of science that exists!_

Well, the rain proved me wrong on that front. Gravity still existed, so that was nice. Whether or not objects fell at the same rate or not was a different matter, but the fact that it was still there, sure and strong, comforted me a bit.

 _And maybe I'll get to learn more about this world. I could create and prove scientific theories never seen before!_

"PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS? OR WOULD YOU PREFER A MORE AMUSING WAY TO GET THEM?" WX asked with a sneer.

"Just thinking about something you wouldn't care about," I replied absently. He frowned, and I realized the rain had finally stopped, although he was still sparking a bit from the rain still gleaming on him.

"MOST LIKELY, BUT I STILL WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT. YOU ARE MAKING SOME WEIRD FACES."

"Science. I'm thinking about science. WX, do you have any idea the fame we could get if we could get out of this world? A completely undiscovered realm, where magic exists!"

He was silent for a couple of seconds. "ARE YOU PLANNING ON USING THE KID AS PROOF OF THIS?"

It took me a moment to realize 'the kid' was referring to Webber. "I wasn't planning on it, but now that you say it..."

"THAT'S ONE THING I WON'T DENY ABOUT HIM- HE'S INDEPENDENT AND DOESN'T LIKE OTHER PEOPLE USING HIM- LIKE MYSELF. I DON'T THINK HE WOULD APPRECIATE BEING USED AS A KICK IN THE FACE TO YOUR PRECIOUS SCIENCE."

"Oh? Since when did you learn so much about him, hmm?"

"YOU LEARN MORE ABOUT SOMEONE BY FIGHTING AGAINST THEM THAN FIGHTING WITH THEM," he huffed.

"Is that your excuse?"

"BESIDES," he went on, ignoring me. "THIS IS ALL ASSUMING WE CAN EVEN _SURVIVE_ THIS PLACE."

"Are you suggesting we could die here?"

"NOTHING HERE HAS BEEN FRIENDLY, IF YOU'VE REALIZED. THE ONLY ONES HERE WHO ARE WILLING TO WORK TOGETHER." WX crossed his arms. "AND I AM ALMOST CERTAIN THAT BOOK OF YOURS WILL BACK ME UP."

 _He's right,_ I realized, mentally going over what I had read in the book. _Almost nothing in there is friendly._

"SPEAKING OF YOUR BOOK, DO YOU THINK YOU COULD LOOK UP A CREATURE FOR ME?"

I stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded. " _You_ want _me_ to actually look at something for you?"

"UNLESS YOU'D BE WILLING TO COUGH IT UP, WHICH I NATURALLY ASSUMED YOU'D BE TOO STUBBORN TO DO."

I sighed, knowing I wasn't going to be going anywhere with him. "Okay, just... describe it to me."

"IT'S BLUE," he started, looking slightly unhappy for some reason. "WITH JAGGED HORNS. BLANK EYES? ALMOST GOAT-LIKE?"

I flipped open the black leather book and flipped through its pages, trying to recall the creature he was talking about. "Where did you see this?" 

"I FOUND A DRY BIOME- DESERT I PRESUMED."

"After this, we need to do something about Webber," I reminded him as I searched.

"I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU EXPECT ME TO DO."

"Us to do," I corrected. "And I'm not sure. There's something in here about mushrooms...?"

Much to my surprise, he let out a weird burst of garbled static, which I realized must have been _laughter_. "HOW DO YOU EXPECT THAT TO HELP? EVEN IF THERE WAS SOME MAGIC MUSHROOM THAT COULD HELP WHATEVER THE HECK IS WRONG WITH HIM, THERE IS NO WAY WE COULD MANAGE TO GET THE KID TO _EAT_ THEM."

It was my turn to laugh, imagining the guaranteed anger he would show if we tried to force-feed him. "We'll find a way," I said.

"WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE?" He asked, sounding very much like he wanted to laugh again.

"Oh! Is this what you were talking about?" Before answering his question, I stopped on the volt goat page and turned it to him.

"VOLT GOAT? WHAT AN ODD SPECIES NAME. IS IT EDIBLE?"

"Yep. But we'll have to get Webber back first." I shivered slightly, remembering his silent, almost savage demonstration in gutting the rabbit. He had shown no sadness nor remorse. In fact, he had shown no emotion at all, minus a quiet determination set in his features.

It was borderline terrifying.

I was afraid that if I was forced to do that myself, I'd begin to lose my own remorse for the smaller animals. That and I felt beyond sick at seeing it happen and I could imagine how terrible it'd be if I had to partake.

I shook my head wildly. _I need to stay focused._ "How do you want to go about this?"

"ABOUT WHAT?"

"The mushrooms."

"OH. WELL, WHAT DO THEY LOOK LIKE?"

"They look like- well, a green mushroom. It has to be cooked though, or it might make matters worse. Got it? _Got it_? I'm talking poison here, WX, don't get any funny ideas."

He tipped his chin, looking slightly offended. "IF I WAS TO KILL HIM, IT WOULD NOT BE BY SUCH AN UNDERHANDED TACTIC AS _POISON_."

"I'm glad that you are so generous," I said sarcastically.

The slightest twitch of his face, the smallest lift of his frown, and I think for the first time since I met him I saw him smile, even just a little bit. _I knew it! I knew there was a nicer robot in there somewhere, WX!_

He shook his head, the smile still on his face. "COME ON. WE'RE BURNING DAYLIGHT. LET'S JUST GET THIS OVER WITH."

 _ **Webber's POV  
**_

 __Our head felt like someone had stuffed it full of cotton and used it as a kickball. Everything was clouded and it hurt like heck.

We could think though.

And we could move.

So that was honestly an improvement.

It was dark, as it appeared the sun had set hours before. Wilson was fast asleep, muttering something in his dreams and WX had his back towards us, facing the flames. We pushed ourself up with one hand, using the other to hold our aching head. At first, we had thought that he didn't realize we were awake, but when he spoke it was without looking at us.

"FEELING BETTER?" He asked, a sort of gentleness in his tone that was completely unexpected, especially from him. "YOU WERE OUT OF IT FOR QUITE AWHILE. IT TOOK US A DAY OR TWO TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG WITH YOU." He finally turned to look at us, the fire's light creating dancing patterns of flames against his face and making him appear almost ghastly as though he was not of this world. "DID YOU KNOW ABOUT HOW SANITY AFFECTS PEOPLE HERE?"

"Y-yes," I stammered, feeling our voice crack as though it hadn't been used in awhile. "Of course. We just... didn't realize..."

He looked back towards the fire. "WILSON SAID YOU'D BE ABLE TO WALK AGAIN SOON," he informed us quietly.

"That'd be nice."

"HE'S SURPRISED ON HOW WELL YOU'VE BEEN HEALING. HE WAS ATTACKED WHILE YOU WERE OUT AND HE'S STILL FEELING THE EFFECTS OF IT, EVEN THOUGH IT WASN'T NEARLY AS BAD AS YOU INJURIES. IS THERE A REASON YOU ARE ABLE TO HEAL FASTER THAN ANY FLESHLING I'VE KNOWN ABOUT?"

"Where we're from, it isn't unnatural." We tipped out head, our clearing mind now a whirlwind of confusion at seeing this side of him. _It's kind of creepy actually._ "Why...? With the injuries we had... how long would it take for people to heal where you're from?"

He was silent for a moment. "YOU'RE NOT FROM EARTH, ARE YOU?"

The question took us way off guard. "W-we're not sure where we're from, to be honest."

"YOU SPOKE OF IT AS THOUGH YOU DO, IN FACT, KNOW."

"It's not that," I protested. "I-it _feels_ natural. Like it's normal for us."

"I KNOW THAT ISN'T THE TRUTH," he said, almost so quietly we could hear it. "I KNOW THAT ISN'T THE TRUTH..."


	10. Chapter 10 Still Unbroken

_**Webber's POV**_

 __"Whoa, whoa, hey, take it easy," Wilson cautioned, supporting us with his shoulder. "You haven't been on your feet in awhile. You're probably _very_ weak right now."

"Haha, yeah, we can tell," I laughed nervously, trying to keep from collapsing. Our knees felt weak and refused to lock into a standing position. Our legs ached, but it was a slight pain, not at all like the burning agony we used to feel in them.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

"Better. A _lot_ better actually." We gave him a toothy grin. "Thanks a lot, Wilson. We probably would've died without you."

"Nah, I don't think so. You said that you survived on your own for awhile, so we probably would die without you." He looked thoughtful for a moment before adding, "WX seemed pretty eager to get you back on your feet. I'm not sure if he wanted to fight something or if he really wanted you better, but hey, it's a nice thought anyway." 

"Speaking of the devil, where is he?"

He laughed a bit. "I honestly have no idea. He was gone when I woke up so." He shrugged. "He found a new area, so he might be over there, but he never tells me anything. Why'd you ask?"

"He was acting really strange the other day." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Well... he asked if we were feeling better, you know, after the whole insanity episode?" He nodded, so we continued. "It wasn't as much what he _said_ it was _how_ he said it. He sounded a touch worried for some reason, and he spoke almost... gently." 

"Are you sure you weren't still feeling the effects of insanity?"

"We might've been, given the circumstances." Beginning to get uncomfortable with the conversation, we changed the subject. "Winter's coming."

"How can you tell?"

We didn't say anything, slightly surprised. _How can you_ not _tell?_ "The air is crisp," I said slowly. "and clean, like snow, is on its way. The air has a slight, frosty chill for it, that you wouldn't get unless you were very late into fall or early winter. Can't you tell?" We broke away from him holding us up and sat.

"Your senses must be stronger than mine because I can't tell any of that." He smiled. "Pretty impressive, Webber."

"Thanks," I huffed. _We didn't even walk and we're out of breath! It's going to take_ forever _to be able to walk properly again!_

"I don't want you two fighting," Wilson said after a minute, and we turned sharply to look at him.

"We have no idea what you're talking about."

"You and WX. I don't want you two fighting... or at least wait until you can walk properly again."

"Whaaaat? Us, _fighting_? That sounds _nothing_ like us. We are an innocent little seven-year-old, Wilson. Never hurt another person in our _life_." We couldn't keep a straight face, and even Wilson cracked a smile.

"I can only wish."

"We're angels, WX and us."

"Let's see how you two are when you can walk properly. Come on, you aren't going to get your strength back sitting." He grabbed us by the uninjured arm and pulled us up again, letting us lean against him. "Try walking."

"We can't," I puffed.

"Just try. One step at a time."

Our legs could barely support us, but at his urging, we forced them to move. It was a jerky movement, but it was enough. It was exhausting, but despite our reluctance, we knew we had to, or else it would only get worse. Determination set in our features as we tried another step.

"It's going to get easier," he promised.

"When?" I growled, taking another shaky and hesitant step.

"Eventually. You've been crippled for weeks."

"Weeks?" I echoed. "It's already been _weeks_?"

He shrugged helplessly. "Come on, focus. I know this is draining your energy, but you have to."

We almost argued. We almost told him to stop, but when we looked at him to see his partially relieved, partially concerned, and partially gentle and understanding, we couldn't bring ourself to. _He's really trying to help us... and he's probably helping us a great deal. It's difficult now but it'll get better._ "Thank you," I managed, forcing a smile. His eyes glimmered.

"Trust me. You'll be better in no time."

…

The air smelt of frost and dying leaves. With dawn came mist, giving the woods an eerie orange sheen as the light from the sun reflected off of it. We could hear animals scuffling in the undergrowth, preparing themselves for the barren winter. _Food will get scarcer, but our skills will become all the more valuable._ We clenched our fist around our handmade knife, feeling our fingers slide easily into the grip. _This world was made for us. Just like this knife. We fit in._ Squeezing our eyes shut, we tightened our grip.

No.

Reluctantly, we forced ourself to open our eyes and look around, noting the fact our hearing dimmed slightly as we did. _Interesting._ However tempting the blade was, we weren't that desperate.

Yet.

 _Stop that. You have a job to do, Webber. You have this blade for a reason. The others count on us. They act like they know what they're doing, but neither of them has proper instincts._ We let out a deep breath we didn't know we were holding. _This winter will be tough. We might have to carry this entire group through spring. Or at least until they understand that this world isn't going to hold their hands. This world is set out to kill us._

 _This world is going to kill us._

 _For crying out loud-_ Stop _that Webber!_ We felt something warm run down our hand and through our fur, and we sharply looked down to see claws digging into our palm. We stood, closing our eyes again and letting the forest's sounds engulf our senses. When our eyes were open, we couldn't tell if the rustling was from the browning leaves still hanging on to the otherwise barren treetops or animals scurrying in the dry leaf mold, but when our eyes were closed we could hear the differences. Animals made a light thumping sound along with their rustling, while we could distinguish the faint sound of branches bumping against each other as they swayed along with their dying burdens.

The world was somehow almost scarier when we heard it like that.

There! A small, furry animal, near us. We took a few steps forward, listening, then lunged towards the sound. The brown animal, its fur beginning to turn white for the cold months ahead, screamed and thrust itself forward with surprising speed.

It wasn't fast enough.

Weeks after Wilson had given us the all-clear, we had spent trying to be able to walk and run again. Now, we were almost able to run as fast as we could before the accident, and clearly, it was enough to give us the edge on the rabbit, and not five seconds after its initial flight it was caught and stabbed by the knife in our hand. A satisfied grin set itself on our face, as we flicked the animal's blood off of our hands. _We need to learn how to kill cleaner, but otherwise not a terrible kill._ The mist was beginning to clear, so the sounds were becoming even louder as they were no longer deterred by the watery air.

We looked back at where we had come from, towards our camp. _It may become difficult, but we can survive._

 _After all, it's not the first time we've been in this situation._

 _And at least this time we're not alone._


	11. Chapter 11 Wasteland

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __I wasn't going to deny. I had honestly thought that after the whole episode with Webber being crippled, he and WX wouldn't be so aggressive towards each other. Especially given that the latter had seemed almost protective over him- despite the sharp way he showed it. Webber's confusion over WX's gentleness after he had been insane for some time only cemented this thought.

I was totally wrong though.

In fact, their arguments only got more ridiculous. For the moment, they weren't fighting, but WX had gone off _again_ so he wasn't really there to argue with. Webber, on the other hand, was humming while working on preparing a volt goat, which it took WX and I's combined strengths to kill. The creature was a bit bigger than me, but Webber didn't even seem to notice the way it easily dwarfed him in size. His knife gleamed with blood but he paid no attention to it. It was kind of creepy if I had to be honest. I hesitated, then picked up my spear, which had been on the ground by my feet. Webber looked up at me, then went back to the goat. "Where are you going?" He asked. I squinted at him. "What?"

"Are you alright?" I asked. He didn't sound questioning. He sounded almost... sad.

"Yeah? Why do you ask?"

"Well, you sounded kind of sad or lost when you said that."

"It's nothing. We're just concentrating. Anyway, where are you going?"

Frowning slightly at the obvious distraction, I debated for a moment whether or not to continue to press the subject, but I really wasn't up to getting on his bad side so I went along with it. "I was going to check out that desert WX found. We've only seen the edge of it so who knows what new animals are in the rest of it."

"Okay."

I paused for a moment. There was something wrong. _What could be going on in your mind now...? Or, I could just be seeing problems that aren't there. I'll talk to him about it again later when he's not busy._

"I'll be back soon."

"Good luck."

…

"I'm leaving I'm leaving for crying out loud _stop chasing me you stupid mutts_!"

The large, blue brute behind me only barked and snapped at me, missing but so close to hitting me I could feel the chill rising from its very fur as though the hound itself was carved out of ice. _And_ _knowing this world's physics that probably isn't far from the truth._ "I wasn't going near your den! I had no plans on even going near any of you!" My patience wearing thin, I flipped around and cracked my spear against the animal's head, causing it to yelp and get flung back a few paces into its pack of friends. The others scrabbled to move around their injured comrade and leaped at me, their fangs bare but falling just short of actually biting my arm off. The ones who lunged forward slowly back away until they were beside the rest of the pack. The ringleader was back on its paws, taking slow steps towards me, watching the spear I held with a cautious eye.

I quickly shoved the spear in the back of my shirt to free my hands while still keeping it with me and lifted my hands, stretching my fingers apart and trying to appear harmless. "See? I just want to get out of here okay? I swear I won't touch your creepy bone hills. Oh- uh, oh dear, you probably want me for your creepy bone hills, don't you? Look, I'm not good for eating. I don't have a lot of meat on my bones, see?" I rolled up my shirt's sleeve to show my thinness. "Oh darn, it's such a shame killing me won't help very much, I guess you'll have to wait for another survivor?" _Am I seriously trying to reason with a pack of bloodthirsty hounds?_

 _Wow, okay, stooping down to a new level of crazy Wilson. Great job._ Slowly backing away from the beasts, my spear fell to the ground, but I was too afraid to stop to pick it up. Once I had gotten a good five feet away from the spear, the leader bent its head to sniff at it, not taking its pupil-less gaze off of me for a second. It raised its bluish tinted nose and sniffed the air, fixed me with one last brutal glare, and let out a dismissive bark. Without another sound, the pack turned in unison and slunk back towards their dens. My chest was tight with panic and it was hard to catch my breath, but after a minute or so I was able to move again and picked up my spear, watching out for any more of the oddly colored hounds. We had fought with the hounds before, of course, but these ones with the cold blue fur seemed entirely different. They were much bigger than their black variants, and their fangs were shaped like ragged icicles instead of being smooth and pointed. _Okay, note to self. Don't go near the bone hills in the desert._ I thought, my heart pounding in my ears. I stared in the direction of the monsters before choosing to go another way. I wasn't going back yet, but I was _definitely_ not going anywhere near those hounds.

Eventually, the sand began to disperse, revealing hard gray stone with yellowish speckles underneath it. Along with the sand, the heat began to vanish as well, leaving a chilling frosty feel to the air and bringing with it a bitter wind. Teeth already beginning to chatter, I wrapped my arms around myself, attempting to keep some of the heat from leaving my body. _I need to get back_ , I thought, looking towards a mound of green. _A hill. I believe I've seen that one before, actually._

I decided it was my best bet and made my way towards it. I was just a few yards to the hill before the world seemed to flip over and my legs shot out from under me, sending me to the rocky ground and pain shot of the base of my spine. I lay on the ground for a time, trying to gather the energy to move. After several minutes had passed, I dragged myself to a sitting position, feeling the ice I had slipped on clearly now as it had mostly melted due to my body heat and soaked into my shirt and pants. My spear was a few paces away, and I realized that if I had fallen in any more awkward position I could've fallen on its point and stabbed myself on pure accident. I crawled over to the weapon again and used it to stand up, realizing the icy water had numbed any pain I had previously felt. I took a deep breath then continued my way, albeit at a much slower pace.

By the time I finally got back home, WX was already back from who-knows-where, a small chunk of meat in his hand. At first, I thought everything was calm. Then, I noticed he and Webber were having a glare-off, watching each other in total silence, unnaturally still, with similar angry expressions. "Oh dear, what did I miss this time?" I asked, hoping to break the awkward silence. As if it was a cue, they both looked at me, and the tension disappeared.

"Oh, hey," Webber said, looking towards the empty fire pit.

"Why were you glaring at each other?" I pressed, exasperated.

"GIVE ME A REASON AND THAT'LL BE PART OF IT," WX huffed, and I rolled my eyes.

"Did you find anything?"

"Nope. It got way too cold before I could." I purposely, yet uneasily, left out the part about me getting chased by the blue brutes that were the hounds.

"Cold's right!" He exclaimed, his breath billowing out in a cloud. I laughed a little bit and started to set up the fire.

…

The next day it snowed.

WX seemed to be having a confusing time, trying to discover why rain seemed to affect him but snow, which was essentially its cold, powdery cousin, did not. Webber, on the other hand, appeared to be completely unable to decipher exactly _what_ he was feeling. He flinched every time a snowflake landed on him, yet he still acted giddier than usual. Amusingly enough, I even caught him sticking his tongue out a couple times to catch the flakes in his mouth.

It was almost adorable to watch, actually. I wasn't going to say as much, in fear he would get mad or embarrassed, but I enjoyed seeing an almost cute side to the typically prickly spider boy. WX didn't look anywhere near as amused as I felt. In fact, he actually looked quite annoyed, as though he hated this new side of his rival for some odd reason. I frowned but didn't say anything.

"THIS IS ONLY GOING TO MAKE OUR SURVIVAL HARDER," WX commented, coming to stand beside me. "I HOPE YOU HAD PLANS FOR THIS."

"Haha, nope. I don't."

He deadpanned. "YOU'RE JOKING, RIGHT?"

"Well, _I_ don't have a plan." My gaze shifted to Webber and I pointed at him. " _He_ , however, might."

"YOU'RE SERIOUSLY GOING TO RELY ON THE HALF-BRED SEVEN-YEAR-OLD FOR OUR SURVIVAL." He rubbed the sides of his head, around where his temples would be if he were human. "YOU DO KNOW THIS IS LIFE OR DEATH, RIGHT?"

"Of course, but unless you have some magical ability to survive like he can I think he's our best bet."

We watched Webber in silence for a second as he pounced on a snowflake, smiling childishly as it landed on his forehead instead. "HE'S A PRETTY POOR BEST. WE ALMOST DESERVE TO DIE IF WE'RE RELYING ON THAT THING."

"Don't jinx us," I said, trying to make him smile again. It was always the oddest and most interesting thing when the arrogant robot smiled. But he was already looking away, holding out his hand and letting a couple white specks gather on it without melting before he closed it into a fist.

"I WASN'T JINXING US. I WAS TELLING THE TRUTH." he replied in almost a whisper, before stalking away to check on the fire.

I blinked, almost scared for a moment. What was he trying to say? I gulped and felt my breath get shaky, and suddenly I wasn't so sure I wanted to know.


	12. Chapter 12 Together We Stand

_**Webber's POV**_

 _"Come on! It's fun!"  
_

 _"No! It's way too cold!"_

 _"You're such a baby."_

 _"Am not!"_

 _"Are too!"_

 _"The snow's too deep anyway! There's no way I could walk in that!"  
_

 _"I am! Come on! I will drag you out here!"  
_

 _"And I'll tell Mom on you!"_

We sighed, scratching at the frosty dirt. Our mind was fighting itself. One part was excited to see the snow again, but we found it hard to stay joyful. We couldn't stop thinking about... about... who? _Amber eyes_ , our mind recalled unhelpfully. _Wow, that definitely helps a lot. Thanks a lot, mind._

 _"What are you guys doing?"_

 _"He won't go out into the snow! He's being a scardy-cat!"_

 _"I'm not a scardy-cat! I'm warm!"_

We dug our claws into the palm of our hand and clenched our teeth. _Stop._ We flinched as there was suddenly a hand on our shoulder. Digging our claws in further- while threatening to draw blood- we looked up at Wilson, who sat next to us.

"Are you okay? I mean, I know you said you were, but... I don't think you really are."

"We're fine," I insisted. He looked concerned, and before we could even comprehend what was happening he had his arms wrapped around us in a tight embrace. We stiffened at first but relaxed and returned the hug.

"You know you can tell me about anything, right?" He said quietly, still hugging us.

We hesitated for a moment, before nodding. "Yes."

"I know you are probably lonely and sad, but you still have us- WX and me."

"We know. It's just-" we cut off and nearly kicked ourself for even hinting at our mental torment.

He broke away, looking us in the eye. "It's just...?"

We quietly reached upward and dug our claws into our left arm. _You're an idiot._ "It's just... why are we trying so hard to survive here?" We let out a tortured huff. "Everything wants to kill us already, and we can almost guarantee that we won't get out of this place. So why are we trying?"

Wilson frowned down at our arm before making eye contact again. "Have you felt this way the whole time?" He asked, sounding shocked.

We nodded slowly, looking away and not wanting to meet his gray eyes again. _We're weak. We're sorry Wilson... we aren't strong... we aren't brave._

"You can't just keep all of this from showing," he said unexpectedly. _Oh, right, we're still having this conversation._ "You're just going to make more harm for yourself. We're trying to survive because we need to persevere. Your strength isn't proven by your thoughts or beliefs. It's proven by what you do. Pretending like you can't do anything will only make everything worse. And look at everything you've done already!"

"We haven't done anything!"

"We've survived this long!" He exclaimed, and we began to wonder how much of this was pep talk and how much was him trying to sound epic. At this thought, we couldn't help but smile a bit. "You've survived getting attack by a _literal tree god_ for science's sake!"

That caused a faint bout of laughter, and when we looked back he was beaming with undisguised glee. _He believes in us_ , we realized. _He really believes in us._

"Come on." Wilson stood and reached out his hand to help us stand too. "Let's defeat this world together. It's three of us against one stupid world."

We gratefully took his hand and looked up at him, trying not to laugh at his obviously melodramatic display. _Well, he certainly made us feel better_.

"NOT BAD." We nearly jumped out our fur at WX's comment. Oh yeah. He was here too. "A BIT OVER THE TOP, BUT NOT BAD." He shrugged, looking more amused than anything. We felt a twinge of annoyance, but we didn't say anything. "I COULD'VE DONE WITHOUT THE HEROIC OUTRO THOUGH."

"We could've done without your comments though, so we're even," I snapped, and in the corner of our eye, we spotted Wilson's grin only widening. _Why could he be pleased now?_

 _Oh. Guess he notices that we like fighting. Curious if he'll purposely start fights between us. Doubt it, but it's kind of nice to know he'll most likely not be breaking up arguments between us anymore._ " _I_ COULD'VE DONE WITHOUT YOUR EXISTENCE!" Beside us, Wilson exploded into laughter.

"That is the most childish comeback I have ever heard in my entire life."

"We could annoy you, you know," I told WX. "We could annoy you _so_ much."

"YOU ALREADY DO."

"More than usual."

"I'M NOT COMPLETELY SURE THAT IS POSSIBLE."

"Want to test us?"

"GO AHEAD AND TRY, HALF-BREED."

"You really want to test us? Are you sure about that?"

He gave us the 'I'm-waiting' look and we snickered.

 _"Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray  
South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio,_

 _Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television  
North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe!"_

WX frowned, even more than usual. Of course, our off-key singing was purposefully terrible for an added annoyance factor. He didn't say anything though, which of course, we took as an invitation to continue.

 _"Rosenbergs, H-bomb, Sugar Ray, Panmunjom  
Brando, "The King and I" and "The Catcher in the Rye"_

Eisenhower, vaccine, England's got a new queen  
Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye!"

"OKAY. YOU'VE MADE YOUR POINT." He crossed his arms.

"Have we, WX? Have we?"

"YES."

"We're not sure... Wilson, what do you think?"

"Well, you know what Webber, I don't think you did!"

"Should we do more?"

"You should! Prove how annoying you can be, my apprentice!"

We grinned wildly.

 _"We didn't start the fire  
It was always burning  
Since the world's been turning  
We didn't start the fire  
No we didn't light it  
But we tried to fight it!"_

We received a prompt backhand, but we couldn't help but laugh at it, especially when WX pointed an angry finger at us. "SHUT UP."

"Whoa, someone doesn't get good music when he hears it."

"I didn't even know you knew that song," Wilson laughed. "I would've thought it was too old for you to know."

"You'd be surprised the kind of music our father always listened to." We paused for a moment. "Billy Joel, Beatles, Pink Floyd..."

"You were allowed to listen to Pink Floyd!? Isn't that a bit too mature for you?"

We gave him a deadpan look, and he raised one hand. "Right, right. But... how old exactly you were when you were listening to this stuff?"

"Since we were born." We shrugged.

"Well, I'll admit you have one heck of a taste in music."

"IT'S ANNOYING. MUSIC, IN GENERAL, IS ANNOYING."

"Ah, no wonder you are so terribly unhappy with life, WX. How can anyone think music is annoying?"

Wilson took a step back as though acknowledging he was no longer part of the conversation. We spotted a glimmer of excitement in WX's eyeless gaze as he curled his hands into fists. We bared our fangs, feeling the adrenaline pump through our veins. We weren't sure if he was aiming to hurt us, buthe swung a fist at us anyway. Not even bothering to dodge, we caught the punch and thrust his arm into the air, readying our other hand into a counterattack, but before we could land the hit Wilson grabbed our fist. "Let's not." Narrowing our eyes, we dropped his arm.

"This isn't over."

"YOU KNOW IT'S NOT." He paused, then winked. Shocked by the gesture for a moment, we returned it.

"We'll get you later, paperweight."

For a moment, we could've sworn we saw him smile a bit. "I LOOK FORWARD TO IT, HALF-BREED."


	13. Chapter 13 Divided We Fall Part 1

_**Wilson's POV**_

"YOU'RE A MORON. YOU TOOK US ONE STEP TOO CLOSE TO DEATH, HALF-BREED," WX hissed to a defiant Webber.

" _We_ 're the moron!?" Webber shouted, sounding completely enraged. "We could've saved your life you ingrate! Besides! We tried to go _away_ from the death-monster that wanted to eat us."

A lone spark flew away from the robot's shoulder, but he didn't pay much attention to it. "YOU KNOW VERY WELL WATER COULD KILL ME FAR MORE PAINFULLY THAN ANY BEAST."

"It's all about you, isn't it?"

WX sharply pointed at me. "HE NEARLY DROWNED."

"You're _so_ afraid of water," Webber taunted. "when really if anything's gonna kill you painfully, it's us." WX took a threatening step forward, his fist preparing for the punch.

"Stop it!" I barked, thrusting my way between them and holding them at arm's length away from me. "You two have been arguing since we got back and I'm sick of it!"

Two enraged pairs of eyes turned to glare at me- one pair white and the other pair non-existent. "Good point Wilson! You were the one that decided to go that way even though there was something _clearly_ there that wanted to kill all of us!" Despite the fact neither Webber nor WX was my size- WX's height brought him to about my nose and Webber's barely above my waist- they were beyond intimidating when they were both glaring at me with such intensity either might attack at any second.

"It was none of our faults! It was a simple mistake anyone could have made! Perhaps a mistake that _needed_ to be made to learn about this world!"

"YOU FORGET THIS IS THE SAME ONE THAT WAS STUPID ENOUGH TO RUN RIGHT INTO THE BEARGER," WX sneered.

"And you two got attacked by a tree guard not three days after we came here," I growled, my patience wearing thin. I took a deep breath, trying not to lash out. "It's winter. We can't keep arguing and fighting like this if we want to survive it."

"WE WOULDN'T HAVE ANY PROBLEMS IF THE GENIUS ACTUALLY PLANNED SOMETHING."

"Look here." Finally snapping, I abandoned my stance to keep the two apart to shove my face into WX's. "We need each other to survive. We've made it this far together, and we can get through this together."

"WE DON'T NEED YOU, SCIENTIST." Before I could even respond or comprehend what was going on, I was flung backward, holding my nose as the world tilted and pain blossomed through my face. Something warm and sticky was dripping through my fingers, and it took me a second to realize exactly what happened and jumped forward instantly to return the punch. Before I could, however, I fell, still dizzy after the sudden trauma to my face. In the corner of my eye, I saw Webber lunge towards him, his knife gripped tightly in his hand as he apparently aimed to stab the robot in the chest with it. WX spotted the attack, though, and quickly grabbed Webber's dominant hand, apparently squeezing it a bit judging by the expression on the boy's face.

WX ignored him and instead glared down at me. "YOU ARE NOTHING BUT TROUBLE," he spat, and it took me a second to realize he was still talking to me. "YOU AREN'T STRONG, YOU AREN'T FAST, YOU AREN'T EVEN SMART EVEN THOUGH THAT'S WHAT YOU APPARENTLY PRIDE YOURSELF ON. WE _DON'T NEED YOU._ "

"You're wrong! I'm the only one who knows anything about medicine and wounds!"

"We wouldn't need that if we never got hurt," Webber answered, breaking away from WX's vice grip and rubbing his wrist with muffled growls.

"Oh? And you think you can fight beasts like _that_ on your own?"

"WE WOULDN'T _HAVE_ TO FIGHT THEM IF YOU WEREN'T ALWAYS GOING OUT OF YOUR WAY _TO_ FIGHT THEM!"

I narrowed my eyes, switching the hand holding my nose and pulled myself to my feet. "You know what? Maybe you're right." I grabbed my spear and grabbed it tightly until my knuckles popped. "And maybe I don't need you either." With that final comment, I turned and marched away, and I could feel their gazes boring into my back. _No more. They can go get themselves killed if they want, but I'm not going to be a part of it._

…

 _ **Earlier**_

 _ **...**_

"It's too cold," Webber complained, his breath billowing out in a cloud. "We're gonna freeze to death." He looked up at the frosty branches above us. Even though this place had been a beautiful place during the fall with its multi-colored leaves, seeing the birch forest in winter was an even more amazing sight. The firey leaves that had clung to their perches in the months before now carpeted the ground and shone with a certain sparkle only frost and snow could give.

"Nonsense!" I replied cheerfully. "You're just being dramatic."

"I'M NOT PARTICULARLY ADVANCED IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF YOU MEATSACKS," WX mused. "BUT I'M PRETTY SURE COLD CAN KILL YOU QUITE EASILY."

"It's not _that_ cold. Besides, we haven't all been exploring together since... well, I don't think we ever have, and I'd like to do that before it _actually_ gets cold and we have to deal with that." I crossed my arms as Webber rolled his eyes- which was quite impressive given he had no pupils.

"Fine. Have us catch our death of pneumonia, see if we care when you idiots get yourselves killed without us." He shoved me in an almost affectionate manner. He was in a surprisingly good mood considering his recent bout of mild depression. I laughed a bit and continued walking, but Webber stopped suddenly, his whiskers twitching. "We shouldn't go there," he said uneasily. WX and I just looked at him.

"Why not?"

"We've learned to use our gut feeling to figure out where to go." He shook his head and pointed towards the path I was following. "That's not safe."

"YOU'RE BEING RIDICULOUS," WX scoffed. "THE ONLY THING THAT'S NOT SAFE IS STANDING AROUND IN THE COLD WAITING TO FREEZE TO THE GROUND."

"It's not safe!" He insisted. "We know! We've survived out in the wild before. You have like- what- a couple of months of experience?"

"It doesn't matter. We're going to keep going." I scowled at the kid. He had to learn sooner or later that he wasn't the boss around here. Given his age, he shouldn't even _be_ out there. For all we knew, he could've been lying about everything.

"You're going to regret that," he hissed, but he followed anyway.

The path was actually better lit than the one we had been on previously. Bramble and brush had been shoved away as though it was a path often used by others. _Maybe other humans!_ I thought hopefully, the idea bringing speed to my feet.

In hindsight, I couldn't have been more wrong.

Eventually, we reached a vantage point of the forest. You could look at it and see the entire wood, including a distant smudge I assumed was the savanna that separated the birch forest and the forest of evergreens that our base was hidden in. That wasn't what caught my attention though. Beside me, Webber stiffened with fear and even tough WX froze. For the longest moment, we weren't able to speak, and the silence felt unnatural before Webber finally broke it.

"That's a big deer," he hissed.

As though the sound of his voice wasn't as quiet as it had been, the monstrous beast was obviously alerted to our presence. It was far below us and probably a mile away, and considering how steep the landscape fell away from where we stood, it shouldn't have been able to get us. The moment that single, vicious eye locked on me, a deep feeling of dread made its way into my chest.

It was a certain feeling I was about to die.

I knew I was about to die.

I tried to take a step back but my legs refused to listen. The Deerclops and I stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. It roared and took a step forward. The ground shook under its enormous weight. "Guys," I forced out, even though my throat felt like it was full of gravel. As though breaking them from a trance, they slowly turned to look at me. "Run."

The calmly give order conflicted with its urgency, but they picked it up. Behind us, I could hear the beast's heavily thumping feet as it gave chase. I was going to die.

I was going to _die_.

I risked a glance behind me only to have pure terror drive me to run faster as the Deerclops cleared the drop in a single bound, its eye red with anger. WX was just behind me, and Webber was ahead of me. I gritted my teeth and pushed my body to its limit. I was already running out of breath, and even if I could think of a way out of this I couldn't breathe well enough to tell the others.

I was trapped in this state until I ran out of breath and then? What would become of me? Well, I'd probably get eaten by that one-eyed monster, so that wasn't really an option. My sense of direction had long since fled me, and I just blindly followed Webber's lead. When he stopped I barely stopped in time to keep from crashing into him. "What are you doing? _Move!_ " I shouted, but he shook his head stiffly. I looked beyond him to see greenish blue motion, sloshing endlessly around until it met the sky and most likely even further.

The ocean.

It was the end of the line. Just as WX skidded to a half beside me, Webber flipped around with a scowl. The Deerclops, as though it had realized its prey was cornered, seemed to grin as it slowed down, apparently content to literally scare us to death.

"Jump." WX and I sharply glared at him.

"IMPOSSIBLE."

"Is that all you've got?" Webber challenged the Deerclops, stepping a bit closer to it. Now that it was up close, I could see just how large it truly was. It was taller than three of the trees around us put together and then some. It terrified me. How Webber was able to walk towards it like that was far beyond me. "Chasing pathetic, starving, and weak humans to their death?" He bared his teeth. "That's just sad, even for such an oversized throw rug." He spat the last two words.

"We have to jump." Desperation began to sink in as WX shook his head. "He's going to get himself killed if we don't."

"YOU'RE GOING TO GET _ME_ KILLED IF WE DO!" He protested.

I frowned, trying to think quickly. The Deerclops took a step closer to us, nearly shaking me off of the cliff face. "Hold your breath." I didn't even have times to register Webber's words before I had been shoved over the edge.

I was in free-fall, the waves rapidly coming closer. I took the deepest breath I could muster before I hit the water. I felt my legs being caught by the undertow, but the adrenaline rush and the frantic flight drained me of almost all of my energy. I just managed to look up, seeing that single eye one final time before it turned and stalked away, apparently satisfied with how dead we were.

…

I coughed up a lungful of water, the salt stinging my throat and making my eyes water. I rolled onto my side with a soft groan, coughing up somehow still more water. _How much did I swallow_? I wondered dazedly.

"You're alright," Webber breathed- the first sign that I wasn't alone. I squinted up at him, trying to blink away the blurriness to make our any details of his face. I tried to speak, but my throat was burning too much. "WX is okay too. He's back at camp. We waited for you for a bit but when you didn't appear we came back for you."

"How long was I out?" I croaked.

"A couple hours at most."

I frowned and struggled into a sitting position.

" _Are_ you okay?"

"I'm fine." That wasn't completely true. My limbs felt like they were made out of lead and my head felt like it was full of cotton.

"We'd better get back soon, then."

…

I tossed my head to the side. It didn't matter. I didn't need them. My spear weighed heavily on my shoulder, but the I admittedly like the sensation that there was something other than me. Half of the forest was in between the other two and me before I was able to relax. I took a deep breath and pressed my back against a tree and slid to the ground. I clenched my fists. If they didn't want me, I didn't want them. It wasn't survival anymore, it was a contest.

A contest I didn't plan on losing.


	14. Chapter 14 Divided We Fall Part 2

_**WX-78's POV**_

 __Admittedly, my entire outburst had only a single reason.

I was absolutely terrified. I could only think of one other occasion in my entire life I had ever been so scared, and I wasn't particularly fond of that subject. Slowly, as though any faster movement could alert that beast again, Webber bent down and picked up his knife, which had fallen when I grabbed his hand. He didn't meet my gaze, but I could hear him breathing heavily like he had been running. Neither of us said anything for a long moment. Both of us seemed to be trying to get used to the fact that Wilson had just walked off like that.

I wasn't sure how long we stood in silence and stillness, but eventually, Webber threw his knife towards the empty fire pit, the end sticking in the ground. Without a word, he picked up a handful of dying leaves and twigs and threw it into the ring of rocks. I just watched as he began to set up the fire.

Finally, the silence was broken. "You shouldn't have done that," Webber said heavily. "Now what will we do?" Without pulling the knife out of the ground, he grabbed the hilt of it.

"JUST WHAT WE'VE ALWAYS DONE."

"Just without Wilson," he added quietly.

For a moment, the only sounds were the crackling of the newborn fire.

"Why _did_ you do that?" He asked, staring into the fire.

I had no reply. I had no idea why I went off at Wilson. I wasn't sure if I was just very mad or if it was a side effect of the temporary short-circuit or what. Not that I would let him know of my confusion. "HE WAS A BURDEN."

" _You're_ a burden," he mumbled.

"I DON'T NEED YOU EITHER," I informed him. "I COULD LIVE JUST FINE BY MYSELF."

Webber finally looked up from the fire, a wry grin on his face. "Well, _why_ don't you do that then? Oh wait, let us guess. Some pathetic excuse about you being super nice and awesome and looking after the little kid?" His voice hardened, as though his shock was gradually turning into anger, and he stood to face me. "Guess what, WX? We've survived on our own before. You haven't. You need us. We- however- don't need you."

"I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE NOTICED YET BUT THIS ISN'T EXACTLY EARTH."

"You guys keep saying that word. What does it even _mean_?" He crossed his arms.

I puzzled for a moment over what word he was talking about. "EARTH?"

"Yes!"

"YOU'RE AN IDIOT."

He looked offended. "Look, it doesn't matter. See- see this?" He parted his fur around his knuckles and held it out for me to examine. A trio of long, deep scars was marked across them. "Those scars? Yeah. We got those from living out here. And this?" He showed off another scar on his shoulder. "This too. So yes, we are very serious about living out in this world by ourself. So, you can stay or you can prove your stupidity by leaving."

"IT'S NOT STUPIDITY. IT'S STRENGTH."

"Is that what they're calling it now?" He sounded mockingly thoughtful. His clawed fingers twitched as though he was really in the mood to claw me in the face. I clenched my fist. If he lashed out at me, his claws would barely do anything against my metal skin. Plus, I'd be perfectly justified in punching him back. I almost wanted him to try. "Either way, paperweight, it's your choice."

He looked so smug. It made me want to punch him even more. Refusing to satisfy him with a response, I walked past him and to the fire. Webber laughed in a way that sounded crueler than anything. "Coward! Afraid to deal with the big bad world all by your little lonesome?" I grabbed my bag and weapon, my 'eyes' closed. When I finally opened them again and looked back, I saw that his teeth were bared in a sneer.

I graced him with one final action. The hardest punch I could muster right in the lower jaw before stalking away, giving no final words. I assumed that the previous damage done to the boy's jaw had weakened it without much proper time to heal, and the renewed blunt force had broken open old wounds, mainly judging by the audible _crack_ and the fact that the second I hit him he doubled over in pain. I didn't care anymore. He made his choices and I made mine.

Even if he wanted to he probably couldn't have shouted anything at me, and even though I refused to look back I could feel his ice cold glare burning into my back. He was so certain that he could survive on his own- so certain that he was the best of us three- I was desperate to prove him wrong.

Even if that meant leaving him for dead.

It was quite an amusing yet depressing though at the same time, the latter most likely due to the fact that that would mean I wouldn't be able to watch his certain demise. Whatever. It didn't matter I would probably stumble across his dead body anyway.

Somehow that didn't seem to help matters much.

Naturally, my first instinct was to try to find Wilson again, but my mind instantly shot that down. He was most likely still mad after I had driven him out, and he needed time to cool down before I tried to talk to him again. Which, of course, left only one viable course of action- trying to make it by myself. Which surely wouldn't be too hard for a robot of my build. I couldn't help but puff out my chest a little, feeling almost proud. No world was too strong for me to handle! I was a loner! I didn't need anyone else!

Of course, that would be the very time everything would go downhill.

There was a hill that Wilson had talked about going over when winter first started. It connected the pine forest and the rocky land beyond. I, in my high-and-mighty state of mind, made the very same mistake that Wilson had made that nearly landed him with a mangled leg.

I wasn't listening.

Instead of an obvious hollow _thump_ that signified the arrival of a giant, it was a different kind of footstep- my own. I had noticed that the ground had felt slightly different but I thought little of it. If I had been paying attention, I would've noticed the way that my footsteps echoed instead of being absorbed into the ground. In barely a second I went from feeling like I was on top of the world to falling.

The ground caved in beneath me, unable to support my weight like it had Wilson's. For a moment I was certain I was about to die. The floor below me- if there was any at all- was hidden away in shadow, so hitting it was about as sudden and jarring as you could get. I was temporarily paralyzed by the impact, but slowly I regained sensation in my limbs. Sitting up was painful. I had just managed to lift my arm to try to stand when something caught my eye. I completely froze, hoping whatever it was would go away. Whatever it was shrunk and disappeared for a moment before reappearing, and I realized what they were.

Eyes.

Someone, or some _thing_ , was watching me. Now determined to not show weakness to the strange monster, I forced myself to my feet, ignoring the pain and wobbliness and the fact that my knees refused to lock into a standing position. I glared in the direction of the eyes, and I got a better look at them. They were big and round, and a shade of red that looked closer to pink. After a moment of basically having a staring contest with them, another pair of eyes, a deeper red this time, appeared next to the first. This creature was holding a sort of berry in its mouth that glowed, showing its face and giving it an almost creepy glow. From what I saw, the creature was spider-like and white, but that's all I could really make out. The spider took a few steps closer to me before dropping the berry and scampering back into the darkness.

My gaze flicked to it and back at the eyes. They just seemed to be... waiting. For what? I couldn't tell, but I definitely was not eating that berry. I glanced up but it appeared that I wasn't going to be able to escape that way. The creature with the pink eyes hissed something at me, and I couldn't help but flinch. Apparently, both of the red-eyed creature and the pink-eyed creature were spiders. Interesting. I wasn't entirely sure of how much time had passed before the spiders retreated, never once attempting to get closer to me or try to communicate again. By now, the sun had been gone for quite some time and the only thing keeping me from getting slaughtered by the beast in the dark was the strangely glowing berry at my feet. It wasn't much, but it was enough. Cautiously, I bent down to hold the fruit.

I looked beyond the cave, my mind working hard as it tried to find a way out of this mess. Going back up from where I fell from was out of the question, considering that the entrance was far above my head. I wasn't too fond of exploring the cave by myself, so my train of thought went right to 'wait for a rescue'.

Ahh, nope. That probably wasn't going to work either. Most likely, Wilson thought I was still with Webber, and Webber probably thought that I went to find Wilson. I slowly lowered myself into a sitting position. Even if they didn't think that what would make them want to try to rescue me in the first place.

They would never look for me.

I brought my knees up, resting my chin on them. There was a strange feeling inching its way up my spine. Some sort of emotion that I could not properly comprehend. I had a sneaking suspicion that I knew what it was, but some part of me wanted to deny it.

Guilt.

I felt bad.

Robots couldn't cry, that was a proven fact. It was scientifically impossible even if some sort of mechanism was implemented to allow it. But at that moment, that guilt pressing at me like that, I felt closer to tears than I had ever felt. _Stop that. It's the darkness getting to you,_ I told myself furiously, but no matter how many times I told myself that, I knew it wasn't true. I hated being alone. I hated others but I hated being alone more. The lonely feeling of solitude... it wasn't something I could deal with for long.

"The biggest mistake I made in your creation I'm sure." I nearly cried out at the venomous voice behind me. I jumped into a standing position, all of my aches gone as pure terror flooded my senses. No longer was I in a dark cave with no light, and no longer was I alone. The floor, ceilings, and walls were made of an eerily clean white tile, and the... the... _thing_ in front of me brought back far too many memories. I quickly backed away, trying to escape but my back quickly connected with a wall. It (the monster was far too terrible to be referred to as he or she) chuckled softly as though noticing my sudden and intense fear. "I was right about you all along, wasn't I?"

"NO..." I managed to hiss. It looked faintly amused. "YOU'RE... YOU'RE NOT HERE. YOU _CAN'T_ BE."

"Oh good, you figured it out yourself. I was afraid I would have to explain the concept of a conscience to you as well."

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?" I took advantage of a millisecond of bravery to take a step forward.

"The real question is, what do you want from _me_?" Its voice had a way of sticking into my head, tainting every thought with the fear of death or suffering. "After all, what more could _I_ want?" There was a pause that I did not deem it necessary to say anything or talk back at all. Two massive metal claws descended from the ceiling. The panic instantly set in.

 _Those claws grabbing me and lifting me by the shoulders._

 _The sound of metal hitting metal as they crushed me, little by little_

No!

But this time, they were not empty. They held no intent on smashing me or damaging me this time. In fact, they dropped two, fairly large objects on the floor in front of me before retreating. I stared at the two objects in a continued silence. One, the more disturbing one, appeared to be an eyeball, my size or even bigger, without an eyes socket to contain it. The other was a pale, rounded shape with tiny sparks of electricity jumping around on its surface. It- my creator- motioned to the two objects, and I slowly began to piece the clues together.

"THE... THE EYE OF THE DEERCLOPS AND EGG OF THE MOOSE? HOW...? WHY...?"

It fixed me with that glowing orange glare for so long I began to get uncomfortable. "You'll understand soon. But for now, you have something to do."

I opened my mouth to ask what but before I could I had been thrown out of the strange vision. I looked down at my hands and saw them shaking like crazy. That was why I was here. Because anything was better than that place. I was more cared about here than I ever was there, no matter how much they hated me. Nothing could ever surpass the hatred it felt for me.

I had to live with being the biggest mistake ever created in its eyes.

I was a failure.

A flaw.

But that wasn't me anymore. I wasn't there anymore. I straightened myself. I was a _survivor._ No more were the days where death was constantly lurking over my head. No more were the moments when I feared that I would collapse and never boot up again.

But I had a job to do.

And it was time to do it.


	15. Chapter 15 Divided We Fall Part 3

_**Webber's POV**_

Silence. Sweet, sweet silence. For the longest time, all that we ever wanted was someone else to talk to, but now that we had it we just wanted them to stop. We basked in the lack of noise for the first few minutes, but eventually, it got eerie. The chill of winter had driven insects and birds and animals away, so no noise drifted through the air at all. Our ears rang. Weariness began to set in. Usually, this was the point we would try to make some sort of small talk, but there was no one left to talk to. What we said about living in the wild by ourself for a time was very true, but the season of being near others had softened us.

We were pathetic now.

We shook our head, a soft growl rising in our throat. We had to prove we could survive without them. We _could_ survive without them... right? _Of course_ , the scoffing reply echoed through our mind. _You're being ridiculous with your... self-doubt. You know very well you don't need them to survive._ They _need_ you. _When they realize that... they'll come crawling back._

For a reason that had nothing to do with being cold, we shivered. Where the dark thoughts had come from was far beyond our knowledge. We thought briefly back to the memories of playing in the white, powdery snow and vaguely remembered being innocent. Time had been cruel to us, though, so by now, this innocence had long since fled us. _Yes, but that innocence has given way to strength... and speed... your intelligence can use some work though._

 _Ah, gee, thanks, insulted by my own mind. Flattered._

 _Are you really so gullible?_

We closed our eyes and laughed lightly, wryly. Alone for barely an hour and we had already resorted to arguing with ourself? What was the point? Eyes still closed, we bared our teeth. _We just need to get our mind off of... things._ Telling ourself this was no hardship, but for some reason standing up seemed a much harder task than it used to be.

 _Relax. Go out. Get a breath of fresh air. Clear your mind._

 _Relax, Webber._

 _Breathe._

We took a moment to recompose ourself, flexing and unflexing our claws in an attempt to relieve some of the tension built up in them. We couldn't stop working. We could hardly believe how cold it had suddenly gotten. _We need fire- or warmth of some kind._ We tried to keep from shivering as we slowly dragged our gaze across the snowy and barren landscape. _Yes. Out. Out for supplies and... to clear your mind._ We briefly thought of the tree guard followed by the bout of insanity, and we dropped our gaze to our feet. Were we really strong enough to stay out here ourself? It hadn't even been a week before we had been crippled by that blasted tree monster, and we didn't have any clue as to how long it took for insanity to kick in. But hadn't they taken care of us both of those times? Weren't they really the reason we were still alive?

 _Of course not,_ that slightly familiar voice scoffed. _You survived by yourself... well, not_ quite _by yourself._

 _What do you mean?_

 _We had each other, didn't we?_

A chill, more fierce than any other chill we had encountered, racked through our body. _Is... is that who you are?_

 _Proudly._

 _Oh._ As though the realization drained us of our remaining energy, we completely gave up the idea of going out and opted to just let our knees buckle right there. The voice scoffed again.

 _You know, lying there isn't going to do anything, except for maybe get both of us killed. And it'd be a shame if that happened._

We slowly picked ourself up again, listening intently for the voice to speak up again but to no avail. _It must have been a figment of our imagination. Again. Argh, we won't be able to do anything if we fell insane again._

 _We say as though it's a disease, which it might as well be now._ Without thinking about it, we began to move forward, towards the forest. _We need to build something to keep us warm and..._ our stomach growled. _We need food too... can you help us with that?_

Part of us wanted to see if that was all imagined, and judging by the lack of response, it probably was. We forced ourself to raise our chin and puff out our chest a little bit. As though if we convinced ourself that we were strong without them we would be.

We weren't sure exactly how long we had been walking before we had really started to freeze. Our fingers were numb, and the numbness was quickly spreading to our hands and legs. We paused for a moment to breathe warm air into our palms before squinting and looking around. Our mind had been so focused on the freezing air that we didn't even consider where we were going, and it was pretty safe to say we were totally lost. Confused, we turned on our heel to consider the surrounding area. _Over there it appears the forest thins out... maybe we could figure out where we are better where we can see better._ Deciding this was the best course of action- _admittedly because it was the only one we could think of_ \- we made our way towards the thinner trees.

Much like our encounter with the tree guard and Wilson's encounter with the Bearger, we didn't pay attention to the obvious signs ahead of us. The sudden stench, for one, should have been a clear sign not to go that way, but our mind was so much in the distance that we didn't comprehend it until we were face-to-face with one of the scariest things we had ever seen.

Skeletons.

Lots of skeletons.

Almost every single one a human skeleton.

We instantly recoiled, all previous thoughts fleeing our mind in favor of sheer terror. Those were obviously human skeletons, the bones stripped clean of any flesh but the stench of decay was still there. For some reason, though, the skeletons themselves were not what scared us the most. It was the idea that there _had_ been others here, and they _failed_. We were frozen. Part of us wanted to run for the hills, get away from this horrid place as fast as possible. The other half of us- the... 'better half'... of us- was deeply curious as to what struck these other survivors down.

We edged closer to the sight. It appeared there were two full skeletons, both locked in positions of agony, and a scattering of bones that suggested at least another that had been smashed by something. Feeling a little sick, we forced ourself to examine the area even closer, and our eyes caught on something we hadn't seen previously. One of the mossy boulders on the forest floor was, in fact, not a boulder. It appeared that was due to its grayed out color and very mossy covering, but further inspection revealed it to be another skeleton, this one obviously not human. Just the head was thrice our size, and just the sight of it brought back a familiar pain of having a clouded mind and aching head.

 _No no no not doing this again_. Panic was trying to settle in, but we forced ourself to back away. Our legs didn't want to move, partially from being paralyzed by fear and partially since the cold had stripped them of much sensation. It was almost unexpected when the terrified signals from our head finally reached the rest of our body and we fled as fast as our legs could possibly move. Trying to take shallow breaths while still getting enough air was difficult enough, let alone the added difficulty of keeping our vision straight ahead. We saw the land fall away in front of us just as our energy began to fail. _Just over this hill... just over this hill and we can relax._

Turns out it wasn't a hill.

The second we reached the crest of it, we noticed our mistake and slowed to a halt. There _was_ no land there. Just like every other time we had run as fast as possible, we had ended face-to-face with the ocean.

 _How are we supposed to run if there's always a cliff in the way!?_ We took a step back, our senses gradually slowing to normal speed. The waves crashing against the rocky cliff seemed to whisper our name, but before we could get any farther back when a hand rested against our back. We were in mid turn to see who it was- _perhaps Wilson or WX came back for us!-_

Only for that very hand to push us forward.

A shout had already erupted from our mouth and the rocks echoed with it by the time we figured out exactly what had happened.

The next second we hit the water belly-first.

It certainly wasn't the first time we had gone into the ocean- _we thought of the Deerclops with a shiver-_ but it seemed much more shocking this time around, probably due to the fact that tiny sheets of ice had began to freeze bits of water and hitting them drove needle-sharp icicles into our skin. _On our own for less than a day..._ the tiny voice in the back of our head chimed. _And already the battle has been lost._

…

We weren't sure how long it had been before we felt something solid beneath us.

We weren't certain how we had survived, nor what those voices in the background were saying let alone who they belonged to...

It wasn't until a claw sat on our shoulder for a good minute until we realized we weren't dead.

Dripping and shivering violently as the water clinging to our fur began to freeze into clumps, we barely managed to open our eyes to glare at the creature that dare disturb our sleep.

It was a spider.

Just... an ordinary spider... that for some reason made the shivers even more violent and our breath catch in our throat. The spider graced us with a pleasantly vicious grin, and waited until we were fully aware again to speak.

"You've been out for quite awhile," it said in a sneering tone. "Too much water for you?"

"Who... who are you?"

"A friend! An acquaintance! A-well, should I drop the act?" The spider slowly paced around us, examining every dripping fur, ever healed over scar across our body. "I'm part of you, my friend. I'm... sure, you haven't forgotten me."

Our mind still wasn't working the best, and it rolled its eyes at our obviously clueless look. "Have you forgotten already?"

Oh.

Right.

 _Him_.

"What do you want from me?" I rasped.

"A lot of things, but you don't understand. I'm here to help you." Something tinted our senses, something strong and metallic and warm, but when we turned to look at it, it reached out its claw and pressed it against our cheek to stop us from doing so. "Your... 'friends'... will be experiencing something similar, so don't be too scared, human." It stepped away, silencing itself as it probably waited for us to turn and see the thing it stopped us from seeing the first time.

As if the day hadn't been terrifying enough, the sight was somehow even more unexpected and... horrible... then all of the others of that day.

Two items were on the ground in front of us: A bloody horn and a tooth sitting in a rivulet of some glowing orange liquid, possibly lava.

And there were two bodies beyond them.

Two.

A robot's and a scientist's.

 _No._

The claw rested on our back, digging slightly into our flesh as to appear as though it was offering comfort but truly hurting us, but we didn't even feel the pain. We were too busy staring at those two bodies.

The horn was in front of WX's. A large hole had been torn out of the robot's torso. If the wound had been any bigger, he would have been in danger of being split in half by the severity of it.

The tooth was in front of Wilson's. A set of three bloody claw marks had been ripped down his chest, his clothing stained an even darker red and blood still pulsed from it.

We held our head as tears threatened to spill into our vision. _Stop it.. you're stronger than that. They mean nothing to you._

 _But we can't... no..._

"They're not dead," I whispered, hoping to hear the spider agree to confirm it, but the claw simply withdrew and when we risked a glance at it, it appeared to simply shrug.

"I would know as much as you, human." It raised another one of its front claws, examining it just as blood from nowhere began to drip down it. "But you'd better find them quickly, or else... heh, well, I'm not completely sure. All I know..." It paused for a moment, as though trying to think or trying to create tension. "Is that either way, you and I will have fun together... forever."


	16. Chapter 16 Divided We Fall Part 4

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __Turns out, Winter was _very cold_.

It was even colder when you were alone away from a fire or any other source of warmth.

I blew heart into my already freezing hands and rubbed them together as I trudged along, trying to drive the shivers away from my vulnerable frame. Some part of me was greatly regretting leaving like that, but if I was honest with myself I wasn't completely certain Webber wasn't about to tackle me. And despite the fact he was almost half my size, he was also _half spider_ with _claws_ and _teeth_ and I had nothing like that, so he probably would have had the upper hand.

Shivers of fear joined the pre-existing shivers on my arms, and I closed my eyes and forced myself to take a deep breath. I was imagining something that didn't happen- that would _never_ happen. The fact I was imagining being mauled by a _seven-year-old_ only cemented the fact that I was being completely ridiculous.

What I wasn't being ridiculous about was that I could very easily die out here. I squinted at the sky. I wasn't completely sure how long I had been wandering around, but it must have been long enough. The skyline on one horizon was orangish pink with the sunset. Even as I stood I could hear the sounds of birds and other animals becoming quieter and quieter. I slowly dropped my eyes to my feet. I wanted to go back so badly. I wanted to go back and sit next to the fire and watch Webber and WX argue and relax.

 _If I go back now, they'll team up on me,_ I thought wryly. _Even if I could take on and defeat Webber by myself, there is no way I could defend myself against both him and WX._

And _that'd be admitting defeat! They'll see that I don't need them!_

 _But what if they need you?_ A tiny voice pointed out. _Then it's their own fault for chasing me away,_ I thought back furiously. I nodded to myself and looked around the forest, searching for something to make a fire big enough to survive the long winter night and chase away the cold that had settled into my bones.

By the time night had fully fallen, I had managed to get a small fire going. It wasn't much, it probably wasn't enough, but it was something at least. I couldn't let myself fall asleep, the fire was just too weak to allow me to stop caring about it for a minute. It was admittedly hard though... mainly due to the fact it was so cold and being near the fire made me warm, and it was like a blanket, hiding me from the darkness, surrounding me, blanketing me, encouraging me to relax...

 _No! Stay awake, Wilson! Stay awake!_

The sky happily obliged in helping and gentle flakes of snow began to drift down from the sky. They landed softly, without a sound, a silent killer hidden cheerfully behind a mask of frost. I frowned at the fire. _Just a little longer. Just stay awake a little longer... if you fall asleep this fire will go out and you WILL freeze to death. Or get killed by the Night Monster. Or some other terrible fate I can't think_ _of right now._

Daytime was a long time coming. A long, _exhausting_ , time coming. But it finally did come, and when it did the fire was still alive. _First thing's first, I need to find a way to keep myself awake._

My mind instantly turned my feet to the side, and I wondered for a moment why. _Oh, right, the frog ponds.. maybe a little cold water would help._

I didn't want to waste the precious fire though. This was the only thing that stopped me from moving that very second. Hesitantly, I grabbed some fairly thick and sturdy branch from nearby and let it hover in the fire for a moment until it caught. I was careful not to move it too quickly as to kill the newly born flame, but the fire took to the wood much better than it took to the damp grass, and it stayed steady. I shoved the hand not holding the torch into a pocket and puffed my chest out.

I wasn't that easy to take out.

I wasn't that easy to take out!

Filled with rather forced determination, I set off towards the ponds. The snowfall from the night before had become heavier, and as I walked the heaviness only increased. I paused, squinting through the snow as it stung my eyes. _I need to get to shelter first..._ the chill was enough to wake me up finally, but that was no longer something I cared about. The wind was picking up as the snowfall tried to turn into a full-on blizzard.

And yet... below the sound of the howling wind... below the sound of my panicked heartbeat...

Was that coughing?

I frowned and kept my gaze low, trying desperately to keep the snow out of my eyes. It didn't matter if that was someone coughing. They were probably going to die anyway, just as I was. The sound soon disappeared, and I assured myself it was just a figment of my sleep-deprived imagination. In the corners of my eyes, something black whizzed past my vision, and I glanced up.

Naturally, this was a mistake.

Along with the blast of ice-cold snow whipping me in the face, something suddenly wrapped itself around my ankles, and before I could struggle to get them off I tripped, hitting the ground awkwardly. It wasn't a hard landing, but it was a cold landing. The shadows around my feet retreated, and they swirled together vertically in a pillar for a moment.

 _Is this what dying is like? Is this me hallucinating? Will those shadows turn into something to escort me to the afterlife?_

The figure, however, was not at all familiar. I could make it out as being tall and thin, but its silhouette didn't give any indication to any other features. The shadows drew away, just leaving me and the silhouette.

I didn't even notice that it had stopped snowing in a perfect circle around us, and the blizzard raged on around us.

It slowly walked towards me and offered a hand. I was still breathing heavily due to the exertion of pushing through the blizzard for so long, but I took it anyway and it pulled me to my feet.

Its hand was cold and slippery, almost slimy.

 **"You seemed to have fallen,"** the figure commented. Its voice was impossible to describe or comprehend, but if I had to, I would explain it as 'feminine yet masculine, deep yet high-pitched, cheerful yet filled with hatred'.

 __"Yeah... thanks for helping me up." I narrowed my eyes, trying to put out distinguishing features. "Who... are you?"

The figure shrugged a movement that sent ripples all down its incorporeal body. **"No one important to you... yet."**

"Yet?"

 **"Let's just say we aren't supposed to meet until much, much later."**

"Wait..." I took a few panicked steps back, trying to put the pieces together. I wasn't even cold anymore... like the presence of the figure eliminated everything deadly. "Maxwell...?" I didn't even mean for my voice to sound so hostile, but the thought of that arrogant grin resting on me again made me want to punch the nearest living thing.

It laughed. **"No, no. Maxwell is... the master."**

"Master? You're one of Maxwell's creations?"

 **"I existed long before the master,"** it circled me, its body warping and shifting unnaturally. **"You are lost?"**

"I-I guess you could say that."

 **"You are alone as well... I could have sworn you had more people."** It paused. **"They are lost as well."**

"Lost? No, they're back at camp." I frowned. "What do you want from me?"

 **"I want to assist you."** It waved its arm, a tuft of silver-black fur suddenly appearing in its palm. I cautiously reached out to grab it and shivered at the oily texture. **"The fur of the beast mortals like yourself call the Bearger,"** it announced. **"One of the five items needed for your escape."**

"One of? What are the other four?"

 **"Your friends know the answer,"** it replied simply. Behind the figure, more of the blizzard lifted to reveal a pathway... a clear pathway. **"Go to them. They understand now that you need each other."**

I was left with my mouth half-open. "Wait! How would they understand!" I looked back at it, and it was gone. _No!_ "What is your name!? Who are you!?"

The edges of my vision darkened as the same voice echoed through my mind, accompanied by the incredibly loud and piercing sound of tinnitus. **"I am the demon that comes when you call its name...**

 **I am your greatest Nightmare."**


	17. Chapter 17 Six Feet Under

_**Webber's POV**_

 __We could hear a storm raging above us. The sprawling cave system beneath the surface echoed with the gale winds, and every once in awhile we'd stumble across a snowdrift that had sneaked in from the surface. Naturally, we numbly ignored them, still partially frozen from the Ocean's icy water and still terribly shaken from the encounters with the skeleton and... _him_. Every time we closed our eyes we saw those two mangled corpses. Every time a drop of melted frost dripped from the ceiling and landed on us our mind instantly saw it as blood.

The guilt was by far the worst part.

The guilt of chasing them away because we were angry.

The guilt that we might cause their deaths.

Worst of all...

The guilt of making them think we didn't need them.

We needed them. We needed each other. We looked up at a crack of pale light from above, shining down on barren rock. We had been walking through a field of light-producing flowers for... most likely all day now. It hadn't gotten any warmer as the day progressed, but it hadn't gotten much colder either. In fact, it was probably safer down here than it was up there. It didn't really help our situation much considering but at least we knew it could've been worse. The light from the flowers kept us safe from the darkness, but it illuminated our poor condition all too well, namely the shards of ice frozen to our fur and whiskers. We almost unconsciously ran our claws through the clumps, as though trying to be presentable again. We allowed our eyelids to droop shut, walking without really looking where we were going. If we walked into the darkness who really would care? Nobody would even notice we were gone...

Perhaps it was pure luck? Or maybe there was some greater force watching over us that day, although that was something that, in our mind, had been debunked thousands and thousands of times. No matter the reason, destiny saw our predicament, our readiness to die.

And whatever the reason, destiny just wouldn't have it.

Maybe it had been hours, maybe days. Or maybe, it was only a few minutes, but after some time of walking alone in that field of glowing berries, we happened upon the greatest stroke of luck that we had ever had upon entering this part of the world.

We happened upon WX.

Which, perhaps, probably shouldn't have seemed like such good luck, but we saw each other from afar. We didn't question how he got here. We didn't question why we were so happy to see him. We didn't question anything. Before we even knew what we were doing he was right in front of us and we literally hugged him. He let out a faint noise of protest, perhaps a mixture of disgust and shock as well, and shoved us away, looking fierce.

Though... did we see our relief mirrored in his eyeless gaze?

"SO, YOU _DID_ FAIL."

Oh, right, now we remembered why we yelled at him in the first place. Feeling guilty again, we looked away.

"THAT'S SURPRISING, HONESTLY. YOU NOT DENYING THE FACT THAT YOU CAN'T SURVIVE WITHOUT US, THAT IS."

"You don't have to berate us..." I responded quietly, still feeling faint with glee. "We know what we did was stupid, you don't have to tell us."

How in the _world_ did he manage to look evensmugger?

"You're in the same situation, aren't you?!"

"WELL," he spread his arms and motioned to the field, looking the slightest bit helpless. "IT APPEARS SO."

"Were you really going to try to lecture us on something you did as well?"

For a moment he was silent, examining every inch of our frost-clumped fur and every ice-tipped hair. "AT LEAST I DIDN'T NEARLY FREEZE TO DEATH ON THE WAY DOWN," he pointed out.

"You obviously didn't have such a graceful descent." We looked pointedly at his shoulder, which looked like it had been smashed, most likely when he fell.

He narrowed his 'eyes'. "DID I NOT HIT YOU HARD ENOUGH TO BREAK YOUR JAW LAST TIME?"

"Already on the threats? Can't we wait to try to kill each other until we're, you know, not each other's only hopes of survival?"

He sighed, one of those 'that's a good point but I don't want to admit it' sighs.

"As soon as we get back you can make all of the scary faces you want," I promised, smiling pleasantly.

"AND FIND WILSON," he insisted.

We tipped our head. "Wilson won't _want_ to come back," I scoffed. "He's too confident in his own powers. Moron, he's going to get himself killed..." Our voice faded out as the 'know-it-all' look became more and more apparent on the robot's face. "Don't you-"

"YOU DO REALIZE THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT YOU WERE DOING." WX crossed his arms. "I DON'T THINK HE'LL BE BETTER OFF WITHOUT US. IT'D BE A PITY TO STUMBLE ACROSS HIS CORPSE." Despite his fairly harsh words, actual hints of concern crept into his expression. _He cares, he just really, really, really hates showing it._

 _We can understand that..._

"Well anyway, standing around here doing nothing isn't going to help. What do you suggest?"

"THERE'S NOTHING THAT WAY," he started, pointing at where he came from. "EXCEPT FOR A HOLE VERY VERY VERY HIGH UP. AND UNLESS YOU ACTUALLY HAVE SOME USEFUL SPIDER TRAITS LIKE CLIMBING THERE'S NO WAY WE CAN GET UP THERE." He promptly grabbed the nearest light fruit from its plant and took a bite of it. "AND IF WE GO ANYWHERE ELSE THE FIELD ENDS." He was silent for a moment before adding quietly, "AND I AM NOT CERTAIN YOU CAN LAST MUCH LONGER WITHOUT A FIRE..."

"We'll be fine," I insisted, suddenly worried that even he noticed that we were off. _How bad is it really?_

Another flash in our mind: crimson blood, loose bolts, crying, screaming.

"WHATEVER YOU SAY... BUT IF YOU SUDDENLY DROP I'M NOT COMING BACK FOR YOU." We couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

"If you suddenly drop it'll be us holding the knife," I quipped without even thinking about it. He looked almost amused for a moment before he started heading to our right, where the field seemed to go on. 

"COME ON, LET'S FIND A WAY OUT OF HERE."

We continued walking, just like before. Unlike before, though, we weren't alone, and although WX himself was as cold as the stone we walked on we didn't care. We didn't need him for warmth, we needed him because we felt weak without him. We lapsed into silence, neither of us having a reason to say anything and, at least for us, the concern of another cave-in was heavy on our mind.

Speaking of which, destiny decided that today wasn't fulfilling enough so it stepped in again. This time, it made itself known once more with a bang.

Or, a clatter more like. A clatter of rocks falling from the ceiling. Both of our gazes snapped to the roof at once, the idea of a cave-in suddenly becoming more of a reality. Fate was being nice this time around, though.

Only a small circular portion of the ceiling fell away, a giant heap of snow falling into the newly created hole as well.

In the meanwhile, we heard some sort of... grumbling noise in the distance.

In the circle of light produced by the hole, a shadow appeared. A very unbelievable and very familiar shadow. "WHAT...?"

"Heyyyy Wilson, we were just talking about you!" We called up to the man, who looked more confused than ever.

"The shadow creep was right!" He shouted back, beaming. WX had his face buried and was muttering something along the lines of 'this can't be happening'.

"Let us guess! Your friends are in danger and/or dying and/or dead!"

"And they're right here," Wilson added sheepishly. "But yes, you're right as well. What are the _odds_!?"

We exchanged a glance with WX before returning his grin. "So, you know how you're up there and we're _not_?"

He laughed to himself, a sound that echoed through the caves almost endlessly. "I get it, you knuckleheads. I didn't realize it'd be so far down...it's too far for a vine or a branch or anything..."

We tipped our head, listening to that growling sound growing a bit louder.

"NO ROPE?"

"Too far." He shook his head and disappeared for a moment, probably trying to wrack his brain.

Around that time is when the first worm attacked. It was so sudden, so uncalled for, that the enormous creature rising out of the ground was enough to send us flinching so hard we nearly fell over. Dark fur covered its entire, long body is purple and midnight-blue stripes, and jagged teeth were _everywhere_ in its gaping maw as it roared to the ceiling and dove back underground.

We were getting very tired of panicking at this point.

There was a pause when everything was quiet again before the worm surged upward again, one of its dagger-like teeth scraping our abdomen as it moved just passed us. We growled. The wound already stung but it wasn't anything compared to some of the things we already had to deal with.

Wilson continued to watch from above, his gray eyes becoming more and more concerned with every passing moment. His eyes widened and he disappeared from view once more, but we were too busy trying to dodge the worm to really notice. When he reappeared, he had the 'I'm-about-to-do-something-really-stupid' expression. "Use the worm to get up here!" He called after a moment's consideration.

"What!? Are you insane!?"

"When it comes up grab the stem on its forehead!" He called back. "It might be the only way!"

"YOU'RE CRAZY!" WX protested, but before he could complain very long the hit him with its tail so hard he fell and slid a few feet.

He was right. That might be the only way.

Putting on a brave face, we narrowed our eyes. "Are you alright?"

"I'M FINE," WX insisted, getting back to his feet and looking angrier than ever.

"Then follow my lead." Before he could protest again, the worm resurfaced. The very second its head rose from the ground we were moving, and then we were on its head, holding onto the plant stem sprouting from its head. And then, once again, before we knew it we were on the surface again with the help of Wilson. We were more than content to sit on our hands and knees and _breathe._

Before we had even finished catching our breath WX had joined us on the surface, looking just as shaken as we felt. And of course, just like he always had been, Wilson was crouched at our side, concern etched into his face as he gently patted our back. We didn't say anything- we couldn't in fear of just collapsing right there, but we smiled at him. The most legitimate smile we could manage, and we could see it in his eyes. That's all he wanted. That's all he needed. Finally, we managed to get enough of our strength back to surprise hug him, and he didn't hesitate to hug us back. "Thank you," I whispered. "Thank you..."


	18. Chapter 18 Eye Can See For Miles

_**Webber's POV**_

 __The bitter cold of winter seemed far away now. The muffled chirps of snowy blue birds that lived in the barren landscape were the only thing that broken the uncomfortable silence.

Well, that and the sound of the fire crackling nearby. It was strange how much the sound came as a relief to us. It didn't even occur to us before that we didn't have any hope to hear it again. Gradually, our senses returned, and we became acutely aware of how, despite the heat that was heavy in our fur, there was an underlying chill we could not shake off. We stretched, uncurling from the ball we didn't know we had curled into. Wilson, disturbed by the movement, glanced down at us and smiled. We instantly felt our cheeks flush with embarrassment, but the fact that we had essentially cuddled up to him all night for warmth was not brought up at all. A moment of silence passed before he turned back to the fire. We stifled a sneeze and blinked up at him, even though he wasn't looking at us anymore. Finally, we couldn't hold it in anymore and sneezed anyway, a small and childish sound which _definitely did not help our pride in this situation at all_.

"You just can't keep yourself out of trouble, can you?" Wilson chuckled. "I've never know anyone more prone to the elements than you are."

We looked away, burning with shame.

"It's... not hypothermia, right?"

He shrugged. "I'm pretty sure you just got a cold. Which isn't surprising, considering you were soaking wet in the middle of winter away from the sun for who-knows-how-long. What did you even _do_ to get so wet? Take a swim?"

"That's... closer to the truth than you'd probably think," I admitted ruefully.

He quickly gave us an alarmed look.

"We were pushed," I added quickly, not wanting to seem even stupider than we already did. "by a shadow." _Should've left that out..._

Instead of laughing or making fun of us for believing a shadow could do such a thing, a deep frown replaced his smile. He opened his mouth to say something when one of the frozen bushes crackled and WX pushed his way out of the undergrowth, wearing a similar stern expression. "WE WEREN'T FOLLOWED," he said. He looked a bit worse for wear but considering the circumstances, it could've have ended much worse. _For any of us._

Wilson nodded, his gaze remote for a moment before clearing. "I saw a shadow," he murmured after a moment.

WX scoffed as he sat beside the fire.

"It wasn't an ordinary shadow though. It..." he took a deep breath. "It talked to me."

WX perked up at this, as did we. "WHAT DID IT SAY?" WX pressed warily.

Wilson looked back at the fire. "It's... probably nothing. Just imagining stuff..."

An uncomfortable silence settled over us. We took a deep breath- making a sniffing sound due to congestion from the cold- and sat up a little straighter, bringing our knees to our face and resting our chin on them. "I saw my spider," I said after a minute. Two shocked gazes turned on us, and we shrank in our own fur.

WX tore his gaze away and concentrated on the fire as though some secret message was written in it. "I... I SAW MY CREATOR," he murmured in a tired tone. We were almost certain we didn't imagine the quiver in his voice.

"Okay, wow, I thought my vision was the craziest. _What_ are you talking about, seeing your _spider_? Like, the one that supposedly _ate_ you?"

We nodded miserably.

"I ASSUME THIS MEANS WE ALL SAW THE SAME THING, EXCEPT BEING HAUNTED BY OUR WORST NIGHTMARES," WX said breezily. _How horrible must that be? Being afraid of your only parent? We couldn't... we couldn't bear to hate our parents..._

"That was what _he_ told me," I confirmed. "The... seeing the same thing part..."

"So is that what we're supposed to do? Kill the abomination that is the Bearger?" Wilson tipped his head.

"The Bearger? No, we saw..." our voice faltered. "the tooth of the Dragonfly and the horn of the Ancient Guardian..."

There was a pause, before WX added his own. "EGG OF THE MOOSE AND EYE OF THE DEERCLOPS."

Wilson groaned and put his head in his hands. "Are you _serious?_ We have to kill _all five?_ "

"We couldn't even take on the Deerclops..." We hunched our shoulders sadly. "Guess that means we're stuck here..."

"Don't be that way! We can do this!" Wilson looked from us to WX, then back again. His determined expression fell slightly. "Guys?"

"IT'S A SUICIDE MISSION," WX pointed out.

"It's not something we have to do _right now_." Wilson protested. "We all just got done with a pretty big scare... but we gotta know if we're going to try or not."

"Why would we? It's suicide either way."

"Maybe? But at least if we go for this it's suicide with a _purpose_."

"I WOULDN'T MIND NOT HAVING TO ENDURE ONE OF THESE STUPID WINTERS AGAIN," WX murmured thoughtfully. He motioned towards us. "HE PROBABLY WON'T EVEN LAST UNTIL THE END OF THIS ONE."

We scowled, and judging by the look on Wilson's face, he agreed with WX. "We're stronger than you think we are."

"TREE GUARD, INSANITY, NEARLY FREEZING TO DEATH..."

"Alright, alright, we get it. But we're still alive, aren't we?"

"BECAUSE WE'RE PULLING YOUR WEIGHT. DIDN'T YOUR TIME ALONE TEACH YOU THAT?" A spark of tension shot between us as we bunched our muscles, preparing to finish his beating.

"That's enough!" Wilson snapped. "The last thing we need is for you guys to fight again or science forbid break us apart again."

We growled softly but sat back again, our claws itching to wipe that smug grin off of WX's face.

Wilson pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "So are we going to do this or not? Do you guys want to take our chances against the world or do you guys want to take out these beasts?"

There was a pause as we considered the options. "I think we should go for the giants."

"I THINK YOU'RE BOTH NUTS," WX grumbled.

Wilson looked between us and sighed again. "I have to be the tiebreaker, don't I? Alright." He flipped his book over- which he had previously beside him- and flipped through its pages. He stopped on the Moose. "Since we've already run into the Deerclops this winter, I don't think we will again. This is our best bet for the first giant. We need to separate her from her nest before we fight her."

"IT'S THE EGG WE NEED," WX pointed out.

"Yeah, but I don't want to fight her and the moslings at the same time." He paused as though waiting for another question to be asked, but when none was he nodded once and went on: "She's the spring giant, but it's fairly easy to find the remnants of her nest during the other seasons." He snapped the book shut and stood again, tucking it away under his arm. "So let's go find that nest."

"...now?"

"Now."

We growled softly as we forced ourself to stand. Now us and Wilson stood over WX, who leaned back and made a motion that looked oddly like he'd be rolling his eyes if he had any. "NEITHER OF YOU WILL EVER UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH I HATE YOU," he muttered as he stood up as well.

"Great!" Wilson exclaimed as though WX hadn't said anything. "All three of us! Back together again! Beating the elements and soon to be beating the giants!" He turned on his heel and hummed quietly as he marched towards the savanna.

We smiled, angling our face downward so they couldn't see or hear as we hummed along to the familiar tune. The blizzard had died sometime before we woke up again, but the snowdrifts left over from it were well over our head. Where it wasn't a snowdrift, it went about as high as our knees. We dropped behind a little, due to being the smallest of the group, but we took it to our advantage. As soon as we knew we were out of their peripheral vision, we slowly grabbed a handful of the snow, which crunched and compacted satisfyingly under our grip. We spent a few more seconds rolling it in our hands a few times before throwing it at Wilson and diving beneath the snow before he could catch us, hyper-aware that our black fur would stand out against the snow like a sore thumb but for once not caring.

Wilson jumped at the impact of the snowball and turned quickly as though expecting something terrible to be there. "Webber!" He exclaimed, sounding actually a bit shocked. We peeked over our little hiding place only to get hit in the forehead with a similar snowball. We fell back dramatically, trying hide our laughter under a fit of sneezing. "Has anyone _ever_ told you that you sneeze like a kitten!?" He teased.

"We'll show you who sneezes like a kitten!" We lunged forward and threw a handful of loose snow over his head. He quickly stepped back and sneezed as well due to the snowflakes.

"ENOUGH FOOLING AROUND," WX, who had stopped to watch the miniature snowball fight, said sternly. "WE HAVE ACTUAL WORK TO DO."

Wilson simply looked at him for a second before throwing the snowball he had prepared at him.

WX backed away a little, trying to brush the sticky snow off of his chest.

 _It's amazing how something as little as snow can make us feel... myself again..._

We playfully tackled the robot, not any real force behind the action but enough to send him down. Anger flashed in his eyeless gaze and he kicked us away, driving the air from our lungs as he kicked our stomach to send us off of him. We hit the ground on our side, not actually getting hurt but getting the breath knocked out instead. We looked up, our eyes wide with shock at the sudden change of atmosphere. His 'eyes' were wide too as he shakily forced himself to his feet again. "DON'T. DO. THAT." He growled.

We looked down and nodded, not wanting to get into a fight after feeling like a child like that again.

Beneath us was a smudge of blood.

We took a sharp breath and jumped back. _Did he actually hurt us?_

It wasn't on our fur though, and we weren't hurt as far as we could tell...

Wilson frowned and made his way through the snow to look at it. He hesitated, then carefully dug around it. Our heart began to slow as his digging revealed that it was not blood, but it was the color of blood.

He pulled the object away from the snow and brushed remaining flakes off of it, turning it over in his hands a few times. "What... is this thing?"

"SMART. FIND A WEIRD THING IN THE SNOW AND _PICK IT UP_. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT BEING OUT HERE THIS LONG TAUGHT US," WX huffed, his arms crossed.

It appeared to be a small bone with tiny horns coming out of the red bulb on top. The red bulb rested on a patch of brownish fur. He shrugged and made a motion to throw it away.

The bulb suddenly parted in half to reveal an eye.

"YOU IDIOT!" WX shouted before he seemed to be able to stop himself. At the same time, Wilson threw it as hard as he could. All three of us held our breath, paralyzed in fear of what Wilson may or may not have summoned.

 _We're gonna die, aren't we?_

We quickly glanced to the side as footsteps crunched in the snow. We were the first to hear it due to our superior hearing, but soon they turned too.

 _Crunch. Crunch. Crunch._

The creature made itself shown.

Our first reaction was fear, but it was quickly shoved down. It bounced above the snow, its orange skin standing out against the snow just as bad as our fur did. Two white horns protruded out of its head, and four, sturdy, red legs were keeping its body just below the snow's top.

There was a moment of awkward silence as we tried to figure out if we had to be scared of this creature or not. It was still as well, a pink tongue rolling out of its mouth as it panted like a dog. It licked its chops, looking around (although it could barely be considered that due to its apparent lack of eyes) before stopping, facing the bone. It bounced over to it and picked it up in its mouth, before bounding to Wilson's feet and dropping it.

"Is it... hostile?"

Wilson seemed lost for words as he picked up the eye bone. "I... I think it's a friend..."

"Have you seen it in your book?"

"I... have no idea..."

More silence.

"Can... can we keep it? We've always wanted a dog."

"NO!"

"I... don't see why not if it's not hostile..."

"ARE YOU BOTH IDIOTS?" 

"Probably," I snickered, bending over the creature and patting its head. It panted with joy and licked our hand.

"Don't worry," Wilson scoffed. "I'll make sure he's not some sort of vicious creature. Just in case, though, don't get too attached to him, Webber."

"We won't!" I lied as the creature tackled us in into the snow. A spark of warmth lit in our chest. _It's been a long time since we've been able to laugh like this._

We sighed happily, hugging the creature we just met.

 _It's been a long time..._


	19. Chapter 19 Nightmares and Daydreams

_**WX-78's POV**_

 __I watched in disgust as the two obsessed over the pumpkin dog thing they called "Chester". I didn't see any use for the gross creature, but the two obviously shared the affection for the beast I refused to show. Of course, it wasn't hard to not show it, I had no interest in even liking it.

Though I had to admit, I had never seen Webber look so happy, though I have seen the same look on Wilson's face before while he messed with a couple live rabbits. He dropped the whole science thing until we could escape, which I was perfectly fine with.

Webber laughed as it tackled him, knocking him onto the ground and covering his face with licks. Disgusting. Wilson stood a little ways off, a large grin on his face. He glanced at me, and his expression dropped. "Come on, WX, lighten up a bit, will ya?"

I shook my head. "JUST WAITING FOR IT TO LEAVE," I admitted.

Webber looked up as Chester finally let him stand. "Come on, we don't think this little guy," he patted the beast. "is going anywhere anytime soon."

"Why don't you like him?"

" _HIM ?_ YOU'RE CALLING IT A _HIM ?"_

Wilson shrugged. "We call you a him, don't we?"

I didn't reply. Although he had a good point, I wasn't about to let him get the upper hand, and instead answered his previous question. "I HARDLY STAND IT WITH YOU TWO FLESHLINGS HERE, ANOTHER ONE IS JUST GOING TOO FAR."

"Ya know, it's been the first time in days since he called us that," Webber observed quietly to Wilson, just loud enough for my sensors to pick up.

Wilson nodded. "It's an improvement," he agreed.

Angered, I turned around, trying to wrap my mind around another subject, which became the vision, apparently something we all had. Were each of ours relevant to our past? Webber said he didn't remember, but the look on his face was easy as always to read, and it screamed lies. Hedid remember, which of course, I did too, but I wasn't about to tell the kid about my creator.

In the distance, I saw a flash of blue, I smiled. Game, probably. The color was similar to that of a rabbit's coat. Ignoring and forgetting about the others, I followed it, chasing the flash of blue deeper into the forest, oblivious to the cold and the snow. In a clearing up ahead, I saw another person sitting on a cut down tree stump. He didn't move or say anything, but a shining blue blade hung at his side. He wore a brown leather tunic, which almost matched his short, brown hair.

He was looking away from me at first, but he turned to me and I was caught in the sight of his unnatural, piercing, light blue eyes. Something about him though... he didn't seem like a threat, and I took a few steps towards him. Behind me, I heard Wilson calling my name, and I was shaken into awareness again as he tried to get my attention. I froze again. Was that another vision?

I was still in camp, but sitting instead of standing, and no footsteps in the freshly fallen snow leading to where I went to. I tried to think of what happened, but the only thing I could remember was the light of the shining blue blade.

"UM... DID YOU SEE SOMEONE?" I tried.

Wilson seemed confused. "Some.. _.one_? I think we're the only ones here, WX."

"DID YOU SEE ANYTHING?"

"No, why? Did you?"

I shook my head to clear it. "NO, NEVERMIND, FORGET I SAID ANYTHING. LET ME JUST CHECK SOMETHING OUT."

Wilson smiled, looking up at the sky. "Okay, but don't take too long. Nightfall comes quickly and suddenly."

I nodded, taking off in the direction I saw the person, remembering my footsteps as I walked the trail again, but this time, feeling the harsh cold badly, but I was determined to find this person again. When I reached the clearing, nothing was there. No footsteps, no person, not even the stump he was sitting on.

It must've been a vision. I sighed. Why can't we go a day without something that we had to figure out? Why couldn't things just be easy to find out? When I got back, night was falling, making the snowflakes, which were falling once more, harden into more hail-like balls of ice.

I was tired of snow. I was tired of cold, of hunger. I was sick of it. We hardly had food, living off of volt goats we hunted every few days, but only able to kill a few before cold drove us back. I looked around, finding it somewhat hard to focus my vision. I held my head. Is this what going insane felt like?

Even as night fell, I saw deformed creatures, the same ones I saw when I first found the book, pressing against my vision. Always at the corner of my sight, but gone when I turned to look. Both Webber and Wilson had fallen asleep near the fire, but I continued to gaze in it's leaping flames, mesmerized by the colorful, leaping flames, horrible memories surging in and out of my mind, static in between.

First I was standing before my creator again, it's gaze boring into me, hatred and venom dripping from every word it spat at me. Then I was somewhere dark, the night monster pressing against me, whispering something to me, but so quite I couldn't hear it. Then up ahead, a shining blue light penetrated the never ending blackness.

I ran towards the light, and was hit with a quick slice to the side. I turned around, and saw something running at me at full speed, the only thing I could see of it was the blue light reflecting off of it's shining, gray horn. Then I heard something crying in the distance, like a long-lost child mourning it's only friend, or someone finding out they were never going to see the light of day again. Every emotion I ever felt surged through me at once, ending with a terrified cry and someone yelling for something I couldn't make out.

I jumped back from the fire, sending myself into a nearby tree, rubbing my head as a birchnut fell on it. Wilson planted the birchnut trees nearby to shelter us from wind and rain, but useless now because of being leafless. Where the birchnut came from was beyond me.

"WX," Webber started. "there's a tree there."

I silenced him with a glare, trying again to focus my wavering vision. "You okay?" Wilson asked, yawning.

I shakily glanced around trying to figure out what it was I saw. "I DON'T REALLY KNOW," I admitted.

"You don't know? What happened?"

Slowly, I began to describe my 'dream', leaving out the part about my earlier vision.

"A shining gray horn?" Wilson asked when I finished. "Sounds like the Ancient Guardian."

"It was running towards you? About to ram into you?" Webber asked, a note of fear creeping into his voice.

"YEAH, WHY?"

His eyes widened, terror flashed in his eyes for a second before turning away. "N-nothing," he murmured shakily.

I wasn't convinced, and neither was Wilson, but neither of us tried to push him further. He was already uncomfortable. I sat back down on the cool, dew covered grass of the morning before the dew turned to ice. I sighed. Why couldn't things just be normal once? I felt something on my lap, and I looked down to see Chester trying to lay down on my legs.

I smiled and pet him a few times. "GOOD BOY," I murmured, ignoring the glances from both Wilson and Webber. "GOOD CHESTER."


	20. Chapter 20 Winter Wrap-Up

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __I glanced at WX, who was staring off into space again. I sighed. He had been like this all day, and both Webber and he were beginning to get on my nerves. Webber was always freaking out every time I tried to talk to him, and WX didn't even seem to know I was speaking.

I reminded myself that he may be fighting sanity, which is always a possibility when stuck in this kind of place. I looked up to the sky, the sun finally beginning to rise. The days seemed to be getting longer, but it was impossible to tell when you were too busy worrying about food and shelter from the cold and winds.

The air also seemed to be getting warmer though, and I could actually hunt properly since I could stay out long enough to do so. I stretched, looking again at my companions, then sat back down to think.

I could probably start going back to the rabbit holes, which we couldn't do all winter because the wait was too bad with the cold, but with the warmer weather, the rabbits were bound to be straying from their burrows, looking for the food they longed for all winter, which really didn't seem that long, actually.

But of course, with our luck, the arrival of spring had it's down side, which we didn't know yet. I reminded myself we had to kill the Deerclops and the Moose in order to escape, along with the Bearger, Dragonfly, and the Ancient Guardian.

I pulled our my book again, examining the monsters we would need to kill. That's another strange thing. Two days back, when WX had his vision, another piece of the Ancient Guardian's picture had been added, though whether it was because of the vision or not was beyond me.

Now, the front feet were also visible, along with a tiny piece of what looked like another horn, or maybe the bottom jaw, which connected the horn and the feet. Webber sighed. "We have nothing to do, do we?"

I could tell he was bored out of his mind, and he still had the childish flare that gave him energy and made him want to run and play. A pang shook me. He shouldn't be here. None of us should, in fact, but he was just a kid.

WX was a robot, he didn't need to mature and I was fully grown, but he was only seven. It wasn't fair for him. I shook my head. "Nope."

He sighed again, louder this time, and leaned up against a birchnut tree. "Oi! We're so bored! And nothing to do!"

I smiled at him. "Do you want to just go on a walk? Alone," I added. "I think you can handle it, you're not stupid."

He brightened instantly. "Really, Wilson!?"

I nodded, barely containing a laugh. "Yeah, go ahead."

He jumped up. "Thanks!"

Once he had gone, I leaned up against the nearest tree, relaxing. I closed my eyes, thinking about what I was going to do now. "BORED?" WX asked suddenly, making me jump.

"What? Yeah, yeah I'm bored."

Without moving, he murmured, "SO AM I."

Looking up at the sky, and realizing it was still a few hours before nightfall, I went towards the middle of the camp, fiddling with random things laying around. It came as a relief, having no duties, nothing to do.

Maybe I could go hunting. I thought about it for a second, and before I could decide, WX jumped to his feet. "I'M GOING HUNTING," he announced.

"Can I come?"

He shrugged, already heading towards the rabbit fields. "SURE, JUST DON'T BE A BURDEN."

Holding back a sharp comment about how he never knew me to be a burden, I grabbed my spear and followed him. "It's almost spring," I observed.

WX nodded. "YES, IT MIGHT BE A LITTLE EASIER TO HUNT WHEN THE RABBITS ARE RUNNING."

I glanced at him through the corner of my eye. "You know the old saying about spring?"

"WHAT?"

"April showers bring May flowers," I recited.

"AND...?"

I rolled my eyes. "Showers, WX, showers."

"WHAT, LIKE RAIN SHO-" he stopped, thinking about it for a second. "OH..." he was silent for another second. "WELL, IT'S JUST A SAYING, RIGHT?"

"Hmm," I thought of a way to say no without freaking out the robot. "I don't know. It was true in our world, but I'm not sure about this one."

He seemed satisfied with that, continuing towards the rabbit trails. "LET'S HOPE IT'S NOT."

"Yeah, let's hope," I said, secretly knowing it was going to rain a lot. He's going to have one rude awakening.

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __It was turning nighttime now, Webber was back and looking happy with himself when he added a volt goat to our food supply. "We got bored again, and we decided to hunt," he announced.

Wilson and I also had a successful hunt, bagging at least five rabbits each. The catching was too easy. The best part was the dark nights lost their biting chill, and the snow on the ground and trees was beginning to melt quickly, forming an artificial rainstorm that didn't allow me to stand under any trees for the time being.

Webber glanced up. "Hmm, we might have spring tomorrow," he commented.

Wilson nodded, unable to reply with a bite of rabbit in his mouth. He swallowed. "I don't know, it still has a slight chill."

Webber raised his head. "No," he started. "there's absolutely no scent of frost on the air." I smelled the air. I couldn't tell any difference... by the way, I can smell like any living thing. Webber snorted. "The air's not as crisp as it would be with frost. The air smells slightly damp, suggesting dew."

Wilson seemed impressed. "Wow, where did you get so much knowledge on the outdoors?"

He sighed. "Not good ways. We had to learn the hard way."

I felt a pinch of pity for the kid, which was instantly washed away. Why should I care? I thought about what I was thinking while in the caves, and I felt bad for forcing myself not to care. I was confused... very confused. My head was throbbing again, but I forced myself to look normal, not holding my head or looking around.

It was obvious that it was sanity this time, but I was refusing to let myself go insane. Come to think of it, I was refusing a lot of things. I was jogged from my thoughts by a burning sensation on my head. I jumped back, looking where I was sitting seconds before. Another drop landed on my head, and I found myself in a sudden downpour.

Webber looked thoughtful, watching as I sparked in the rain. "Hmm, it seems that the wetness on the air was in fact, rain, not dew."

I glared at him. "NICE TO KNOW." At least it was spring, which was obvious because of the warmer weather compared to winter, along with the fact it was raining, not snowing.

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, suck it up. We all have to deal with pain every once in a while, right?" Lightning stuck feet away from him, sending him flying back a few paces as he tried to get away from it. "Whoa! Why so close!?"

Wilson looked up from what he was fumbling with in his hands. "I would love it," he started. "if secretly, you were super charged by lightning," he laughed.

"HMMPH, I ONLY WISH."

The rain continued, in fact, beginning to pour even harder, sending regular showers of sparks from me. "You having fun?" Webber asked with a smile. I glared at him again. He glanced up. "Um, that doesn't look too good," he murmured.

"WHAT? WHAT DOESN'T LOOK-" before I could finish, in what seemed like a light brighter and stronger than the sun itself, I was engulfed in lightning. But it didn't hurt. In fact, it was exhilarating. In that split second, I felt I had all the power in the world in my hands, cuffed into fists as the electricity poured through me, sharing it's power.

It stopped as soon as it happened, and we were left again in the rain, the sky dark and heavy with more clouds. I blinked, looking down at myself and wondering what happened. From random points in my body, energy surged beneath my thin, metal skin, sometimes showing as tiny lightning bolts that appearing and disappeared back into me.

I thought of my overall image, bursting with power, speed brought to my feet, strength brought to me as a whole. This was true power. Webber slowly clapped, looking slightly bored. "Good show, good show," he said, yawning. "Good show."

Wilson seemed more interested. "Wow, how do you feel?"

I thought for a second, watching the electricity jump from one spot to another. "STRONGER, AND FASTER," is all I could say.

He smiled widely. "We have a weapon. What was it like?" He asked, beginning to circle me in fascination. "Being struck like that."

"EXHILARATING."

Wilson stopped circling me. "Is that it?" 

"WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT?" I could feel my power ebbing fast, and I wanted to at least look at how strong it made me.

"Show me what it did!" he demanded.

I turned, focusing on a small tree. As fast as possible, with this new-found speed, I was going faster than Webber, I sped towards it, attacking it with the most powerful attack I could muster. I looked back, the tree almost obliterated from my attack, Wilson and Webber's impressed faces showing from the other side.

"THAT'S WHAT IT DID," I said bluntly.

His mouth was wide open in shock. "Wow, that's powerful."

I smiled. I had harnessed the power of the rain at last. "That's some powerful stuff," Webber agreed. "That was amazing!"

I tried to look special. "OF COURSE! I DID IT!"


	21. Chapter 21 April Showers

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __Webber was barely containing a laugh, silenced only by a sharp glare WX was giving him. He looked kind of weak, sitting there in the rain, sparking regularly. It had been raining two days straight, and all three of us were soaked, but WX was having the most problems.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY!" he protested as Webber let out an amused snort.

"It kind of is," he snickered.

He was using his pack as an umbrella again, but it was also soaked and hardly helping at all anymore. He had been stuck at least four times now in the past two days. He was like a walking, talking lightning rod.

I glanced up at the sky, the clouds certainly lighter than they had been lately. "Webber, forecast for tomorrow," I ordered, one of the best things he could do.

He closed his eyes for a second, speaking with his eyes still closed. "A little bit of rain in the morning," he started after a few seconds, his voice strong and confident. "The air is damp, but not wet enough for rain showers all day." He stopped for about a minute. "No tang of frost, so it's going to be warm all day." He opened his eyes again.

I nodded. "Thanks, Webber."

"No problem." He seemed pleased with himself. "Glad I could help."

WX seemed relieved. "FINALLY! AN END TO THIS RAIN!" he exclaimed happily. "I WAS BEGINNING TO THINK IT WOULD NEVER STOP!"

I smiled. "Well, you know what they say. April showers-"

"BRING MAY FLOWERS YEAH, YEAH, I GET IT." He shrugged. "I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT'S SO GREAT ABOUT FLOWERS, THOUGH. I WOULD RATHER SKIP THE SHOWERS AND FLOWERS."

This made Webber burst out laughing, unable to contain it anymore. "We believe flowers would look _beautiful_ on you," he joked.

"OKAY, I'M DONE WITH RAIN AND WEBBER NOW," he announced.

Webber continued to torture the robot. "Rain, rain, go away!" he sang. "Come again another day!"

I sat back, watching to scene and it was one of those points, if I could, I would be wearing 3D glasses with a bucket of popcorn. Of course, it was probably the calm before the storm. It was always too calm, aside from the constant rain. But, even somewhat relaxed situations like this lead to something bad happening.

We had nothing to do all day, so I just kind of listened and watched the two bickering again. Always such a good show. As day became dusk, and the latter by night, we became silent, obviously the other two were expecting something bad too.

Until the rain stopped, and WX seemed more gleeful than I've ever seen him, and Webber laughing even harder at his reactions. Then the joking and talking began again. I grabbed my spear as the sun showed again over the horizon. May as well go hunting.

"Anyone bored enough to hunt?" I asked them.

"Huh?" Webber looked up, eyes flashing with fear for a split second, so quick I thought I imagined it. "Oh," he looked back down. "Sure."

"WHY NOT? SOUNDS GOOD TO ME."

I nodded, setting off towards the rabbit grounds. When we reached it, I stared in dismay at what greeted us. Every rabbit hole was collapsed for the spring. I kicked at a tuft of grass. "Darn," I muttered quietly.

Webber shrugged. "Volt goats?" he suggested.

I turned to him, nodding. "Yep, guess so."

"LET'S GO, BUT I TELL YOU," WX added. "IF FOR SOME OFF THE WALL REASON WE CAN'T HUNT THEM, I BLAME WEBBER."

"What!? Why us?"

He was, of course, ignored by both of us. He growled, taking off in the direction of the desert. "BY THE WAY, YOU'RE WELCOME," WX muttered.

"Welcome?" I echoed. "For what?"

"FOR FINDING THE DESERT," he reminded me.

"Oh, yeah, thanks."

"YOU FORGET OR SOMETHING?"

I nudged him playfully. "How could I? You never let me forget."

When we broke into the desert, I could see all of the goats hopping around idly. Well, almost all of them. Webber pointed towards one. "Looks like it has rabies," he commented.

He was right, it did look like that. Instead of having the clueless, blank look on it's face, mouth chewing something invisible and fur laying flat, it's mouth was twisted into a growl, it's fur spiked and eyes wild.

"YEAH, ALL-POWERFUL-KEEPER-OF-THE-BOOK-THAT-KNOWS-EVERYTHING, WHAT'S WRONG WITH IT?"

"Um..." I stopped, thinking for a second, before pulling it out and flipping through the pages, making Webber roll his eyes and WX facepalm. "There!" I exclaimed, pointing to the volt goat page. "It says, and I quote: 'Volt Goats are normally peaceful creatures, not harming anything that doesn't harm it.'"

"AND...?"

I glared at him. "I'm getting to it, anyway: 'There is a rare occasion, if lightning happens to strike these docile creatures, it gives them energy beyond compare, which circulates through their bodies, spiking their fur and giving them the illusion everything is it's enemy.'"

"So... that means...?"

I put the book away, sighing. "It means that they're basically insane."

"Ah, so what do we do?"

"IGNORE IT?"

Reluctantly, I nodded. "Yeah, let's just forget about it." I pointed to various volt goats in the same condition as it. "We don't want trouble."

WX instantly pointed at Webber. "I BLAME HIM."

I rolled my eyes, going in a direction away from the goats, but away from the forest at the same time. "So anyway-"

Webber shushed me.

"Wait, what?"

"Shhh! Shut up for a second!" he hissed.

I did, because I know Webber has the best hearing, sight and smell of us, and he probably heard something. "What is it?" I whispered.

"Something... seems off," he murmured back. "Too quiet." We were silent for a few more minutes, before he took off running in the direction we were heading.

"Hey! Wait up!"

"WEBBER!"

We tailed after the quick-footed spider, kept running until it was loud enough for us to hear. It was the sound of... electricity? WX slowed a bit, 'eyes' wide. "WAIT A MINUTE."

"What?"

"I RECOGNIZE THAT SOUND..." he trailed off, thinking.

Ahead, we caught sight of what was making the noise. A large... no... a huge, pale, grayish oval shape in a tiny, dead bracken nest. It was at least twice my size, and occasionally giving off bursts of lightning.

"That's the Moose egg...?" Webber guessed, keeping his voice low. "How are we supposed to keep that thing?"

"IT WAS SMALLER IN MY DREAM," WX commented, reminding me that he had the vision of the egg and the eye of the Deerclops.

"Whelp, we tried," I started to turn, stopped by Webber grabbing the collar of my shirt.

"That thing is huge."

"GIGANTIC," WX agreed.

Webber turned around. "Um, guys, I think if we're gonna have to find out how to get it," he pointed behind us. "We're gonna have to ask it's mother first."

I turned to see what he was looking at. Oh no...

 _ **A/N:**_ **Hey guys! Is me, with an author's note, yay! First of all, reviews are highly appreciated, and always taken to heart. Also, if you are wondering anything, here are some tiny things I sometimes think about other stories, not sure if you guys care or not though...**

 **If you like having music with a story, the soundtrack is the same, I.E. Idle during spring = Spring Cleaning, Fighting a giant in fall = E.F.S. Etc.**

 **This story includes, Reign of Giants of course, most Don't Starve Together elements, not including: Tell-tale heart, Jury-rigged portal, or ghosts but just about everything else is in there. It will also include the new Shipwrecked DLC when it comes out or it's contents are at least revealed.**

 **I'm going off as though everything is on default, though giants are obviously more common, that's just their bad luck, and if they ever kill one, it will never respawn. Also, if a giant dies, it dies like how it does in the game, falling to the ground and disappearing, leaving their drops, unlike the animals they have killed, which stay as dead animals (because I prefer that over the animal kicking the bucket, disappearing and leaving a morsel 1/3 it's size on the ground)**

 **Anyone think they can kill all of the giants? Were any of the previous visions symbolic to the future? Will WX and Webber ever go a day without trying to strangle each other? Who's your favorite character? Also, if anyone was wondering about hound attacks, they have been attacked more than once, just those have been minor, non-important attacks.**

 **Anymore questions or comments you may have (even flames) review or P.M. Me and I'll explain either in a P.M. or in the next chapter, depends on the question. Anyways, thanks for reading, night! Sorry for the super long A/N!**

 **P.S. If anyone can guess correctly who WX's creator is, free cookies! I'm trying to be as vague as possible, but they are real... somewhat... a real game character. Don't look at my profile though! That gives it away! *evil snicker***


	22. Chapter 22 Duck Duck Moose Goose!

_**A/N**_ **I will wait a bit longer for any guesses. I will announce who gets those cookies on... hmm... Chapter 25, if I remember XP**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

Shaking, we continued to hold our hand up, mouth open, staring at the creature that stood before us. It looked like a giant bird, brown and white, with a black neck, black webbed feet, a large beak and two huge horns. "That's... a thing," I murmured.

"That's the Moose," Wilson whispered. "Or Goose. That thing is the mother..." his gaze drifted to the giant egg. "Of that."

"That thing is enormous," I commented. It was so large, it hurt our neck just to look up at it's face. It was much bigger than the Tree Guard or how Wilson described the Bearger, probably a bit bigger than the Deerclops.

It looked enraged, lowering it's mighty head to look at us closely. "JUST, STAY, STILL," WX grumbled. "IT WON'T TAKE US AS A THREAT."

After a few seconds, it raised it's neck again, tipping it's head to the sky and making a loud, earth-shaking honk before swiping at us with it's beak, turning quickly to hit Wilson with it's horn. "She doesn't look happy," Wilson called, leaping out of the way of the attack.

"We wonder why," I growled.

"IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE STEALING IT'S EGG OR ANYTHING," WX reminded Wilson sarcastically.

We fell into silence as we dodged the Moose's attacks, not even trying to land a hit, but more trying to tire it out. This just made it even more angry, letting out a honk so loud, it knocked us back and flung our weapons out of our hands. We rubbed our head, launching ourself towards our spear.

It repeated this attack three more times, each time sending us flying back again, before trying to snap at us. It flew a few paces after WX tried to hit it at least once, landing closer to it's nest. It honking five times, but these didn't harm us or send us back, just echoed in the still, damp air.

"WHAT IS IT DOING?" WX whispered to Wilson.

"I don't know," Wilson admitted.

"Um... guys..." we pointed to the egg. Every honk created a new crack in it, until, at the fifth one, it burst, four tiny chicks inside the bottom half.

"They're kinda cute," Wilson murmured.

"Not really." Each one was an ugly mixture of brown and yellow, their beaks looked crooked and lined with teeth, their feathers looked matted with mud or something, sticking out randomly and clumped messily.

They each let out tiny honks, launching themselves into the battle. The look on their faces was that of pure rage, and together, they created a tornado of electricity. "Duck!" Wilson yelled.

"No, Goose."

We were greeted by the two glares. "SHUT UP, WEBBER."

The Moose was going for another bite, landing a hit on Wilson's arm. He held it painfully, then shook his head with a quick, "I'm okay," and leaped for one of the Moslings.

Angry that we couldn't land a hit, we backed up a few paces, then attempted to jump and cling on to it's feathers, trying to reach a weak spot it couldn't reach... the neck. It snapped at us, but it's neck was bent at an awkward angle, and was unable to hit us.

Finally, we reached the top of it's neck, tearing out various feathers to get to it's soft flesh. Afterwards, it was followed by a flurry of stabs, Wilson and WX joining on the attack on it's legs. It honked again, sending all of us flying, and us plummeting to the ground.

We landed on WX, who angrily pushed us off. "GET OFF ME, YOU BIG LUMP." He got up, shook it off, then joined back in. The Moose refused to fall, flailing it's huge wings and hitting us up against a tree.

Struggling to stay awake, we stood, but it was hard, and our balance was completely thrown off. We ended up falling over anyway, trying to wait for the twirling to stop. It only got worse, though, and we tried staying in one spot, only moving to slowly dodge each attack.

Finally, it seemed to slow down, but the sky darkened, becoming dusk. "Just our luck," I hissed.

"HOW ARE WE GOING TO FIGHT IT IN THE DARK?"

Wilson pulled out a small lantern, shaking it a bit, then turned it on. The light it gave off was small at first, but flickered a few times before giving off a strong, large area of vision. "I found something to do with those light bulbs you two brought up," he explained. "It'll help with night fighting."

"Nice job, Wilson."

"YEAH, GREAT IDEA." His words sounded fake and forced, but they were still words.

WX's heavy hitting began to make to Moose limp, and Wilson and I were attacking it more in the back, forcing ourselves to cling to it's feathery back while filling it full of spear holes. "How is this thing ever gonna die?" I asked, exasperated with it already.

"Forever," Wilson replied through clenched teeth.

It struck us that he was probably having trouble with his arm from the previous bite. Down on the ground, WX was having a bit of trouble trying to take on the Moslings. "Need help?" I called down to him.

He shook his head. "I GOT IT," he answered, stubbornly refusing any help, even when Wilson offered.

It was nighttime now, and we were forced to the ground to stay within the light source. The Moose let out another one of it's honks, which sent all of us, and our lantern, flying away. There was a second of silence as we regained ourselves, and that silence was broken by a muffled crack as the lantern broke on a tree, the heat already created setting the thin pine needles on a nearby tree on fire.

We didn't even realize that we were so close to our forest home, and the thought struck us that it could burn it down completely, but instead, the one tree was set alight, and the Moose fell into it, tripped by something. With an agonized squawk, it attempted to run away, it's downy feathers catching fire quickly.

The Moslings stared in fear as they watched their mother burn, then turned to us, stretching their wings aggressively as the tried to intimidate us. Eventually, just as the sun began to rise above the horizon, it fell with a pitiful cry. They gave us a final glare, looking again at their mother, than ran away, taking flight to escape before they were killed.

It took a few seconds to figure out anything that just happened. "Did... did we kill it?" I asked, utterly baffled. Wilson and I were covered in bruises, but very little bleeding wounds since it had mostly been blunt force it used. WX was dented horribly, but still standing as dignified as possible.

Cautiously, we edged towards it, poking it with a spear, but flinching back as it slowly faded away, leaving a small pile of feathers, many large pieces of meat, and a few turkey-like pieces in it's place. "I... think we did..."

"THAT'S... NOT POSSIBLE..."

We were silent for many moments, trying to figure out what just happened. We smiled. "Why are we just standing around? We did it!"

"Um, not exactly," Wilson pointed out. "We don't have the egg."

"HOW DO YOU EXPECT US TO GET THAT THING?"

We thought for a second, before sighing in despair. "We'll have to fight one again?"

Slowly, Wilson began to walk towards the nest. "HEY HEY, HOLD ON!" WX and I ran after him.

"Where are you going?"

He stayed silent until he reached it, peeking inside and pulling out a pale, grayish blue shard, small bolts of electricity coming from it. He smiled. "Maybe this'll work," he suggested.

"NOT THE WHOLE THING?"

"Are you sure a piece will work?"

"I don't know, we can try."

We smiled. "Yeah, I guess so. One down," he added with a touch of pride. "four more to go!"


	23. Chapter 23 Guessing Games

_**A/N**_ **Review Responses!**

 **Anonymous: Thank you for feeling that way! I didn't realize just how much people like this story!**

 **Guest: WX is my favorite too, and as for your guess *looks around shiftily* I'm not telling who it is until the very end, but nice guess!**

 **Lilypaw(1): Once again, I'm flattered. I wouldn't really consider myself to be the best *shuffles feet* But I'm happy you feel that way.**

 **Lilypaw(2): As I said earlier, I'm not telling until the last chapter, but nice guess! Not even from the world of Don't Starve, just the way I like it! XP**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __Well that was a whole bunch of _fun_. That's all I thought of it. _Fun,_ and not the good kind. Wilson and Webber weren't looking too good, the worst wound was Wilson's arm though. I never had problems getting dents out, luckily, so I was still fit.

Despite the injury, Wilson was tossing the small piece of shell back and forth, smiling. "I can't believe we did it," he murmured.

He seemed put out when Webber and I didn't respond, just concentrated on walking. Webber seemed a bit light headed, occasionally stumbling and tripping over things he never would've missed before. It took a second for me to realize I probably looked as bad, covered in mud and the Moose's blood. Some part of me thought we should be celebrating the victory, but we were all exhausted and in no mood for celebrating anything.

Except for Wilson, who seemed to be as giddy as a child. I could understand. Suddenly the impossible task of defeating all of the worst monsters out there seemed simpler. Webber smiled at him. "Calm down Wilson, you're supposed to be the mature one here," he reminded him.

"Oh I know," he replied. "I 'm just so happy we beat it!" His eyes shone. "I never thought it would fall!"

"YEAH YEAH, WE'RE ALL _SO_ EXCITED TO THROUGH OURSELVES BACK INTO BATTLE AGAINST ANOTHER BEAST THAT COULD MURDER US _WITH ONE SWIPE,"_ I grumbled angrily, glaring at them.

Wilson rolled his eyes, muttering something to Webber, who snickered, nodding. "Tell me about it..."

I stopped suddenly, making Wilson walk into me. I turned on him. "HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY, FLESHLING?"

He pushed past. "Uh-huh, got it."

Webber nudged me, making me stumble. "Come on, lighten up, will ya'?"

"IT'S NOT IN MY NATURE."

"Obviously."

"WHY DO YOU CARE ANYWAY?"

He ignored my question. "Did you get your bad temper from where you were built?"

I quickened my pace. "NO."

"Where were you built, anyway?"

"NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS."

"Who built you?"

I stopped. "WHY DOES IT MATTER?," I asked, getting very mad now. "Besides," I tried, but failed to keep an almost wistful note out of my voice. "SHE DOESN'T DESERVE TO BE KNOWN ABOUT." I started again, my pace almost a run.

"Whoa whoa whoa, slow down. _She?_ " He kept at my pace.

"LOOK! GET OFF MY TAIL ALREADY!"

" _She_?" he persisted.

"FINE! YES, _SHE_."

I ran ahead before he could ask anymore questions, ahead of Wilson. Even though he was faster than me, when he caught up to me, he was panting, trying to get his breath back. Probably an injury made it worse. When he got it again, though, he gave me even more trouble. "So what's her name?" he asked, an almost sneering tone in his voice, replaced with humor.

"NOTHING."

"Come on! You can tell us! Alyvia? Lily? Lucy?"

"WHERE ARE YOU GETTING THESE NAMES?"

"Gwyndolin? Amethyst? Was she even a human?"

"STOP IT!"

"A phoenix? Named Fruit Loop, perhaps? Or maybe, a weird dog/phoenix cross?"

"WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU COMING UP WITH THESE?" I could tell that he was just pulling random things out of nowhere now.

"Was her name Flickre? Or maybe, she _was_ a human. Caroline? Come on! You can tell us! We won't tell Wilson!"

He shoved him sharply to the side. "I'M SERIOUS! STOP IT!"

"We will! As soon as you tell us her name!"

"AND I'M TELLING YOU, SHE _HAS_ NO NAME!"

"So she's a robot?"

I was fed up now, deliberately walking away without another word.

"Or maybe you're trying to throw us off. Maybe it _was_ a he. Lemme guess, Cain? Or..." he stopped, his voice suddenly softening. "Was it Maxwell?"

The name stirred up memories. He had been there... but... "NO, NO HE'S NOT."

"Okay then!" He became goofy again, even when we got home. "April? Shimmer? Am I being too innocent on my names? Maybe Rose? Naw, too sweet." I refused to even say anything to him, just trying to coolly ignore him. "Sarah? Maria? Or Saria? Sapphire? Ruby?"

Eventually, though, he seemed to get bored of it, and stopped, though occasionally blurting out names here and there. Though one point, he was convinced it was Caroline. "Come on! It was Caroline, wasn't it? Oh! What was her last name? Hmm, Johnson? Naw, too common. Smith? Also common but... it _was_ Caroline Smith! Wasn't it?"

 _Just shut up, shut up, shut up!_ I refused to say anything, even with Wilson looking at me, questions written all over his face he wanted to be answered, but I didn't say a word, waiting for Webber to be silent already. I had to smile though. Now, he was convinced it was a _she_ and not an _it._ Now, he would never guess.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"We guess Caroline Smith," I announced to Wilson. He shrugged.

"I don't see the point" he admitted.

"That's the best part. There _is_ no point to it!"

"Just to tick off WX?"

"Just to tick off WX," I confirmed.

"Why?" He seemed utterly confused.

"Because," we shrugged. "It's our thing, torturing each other like this." We smiled. "I've found his button to push."

"Why must you two fight so much?" he asked. "You two would probably get along nicely if you didn't try to anger each other."

We laughed. "But it's too fun to give up, and besides," we added, "It's just our way of getting along. If we didn't torture each other, we'd kill each other."

"Why can't you two be _real_ friends?"

"Friends have many different definitions," I told him. "There are friends that help each other, encourage each other, and then there are friends that constantly beat on each other, or perhaps a certain person in that friend group, and then there are those who refused to be called friends, and yet, in times of trouble, will stand by each other to the very end."

"So you two _are_ friends?"

"Not even close."


	24. Chapter 24 Loosening Up a Bit

_**WX-78's POV**_

At least he stopped badgering me. I stole a glance at Webber, who had a smug smile, which made me wonder what he was up to. He seemed to be trying twice as hard lately to annoy me, and it took all of my power to coolly ignore him. "You know, he'll start again sometime," Wilson murmured. "He's not going to stop anytime soon."

"I'VE NOTICED."

"What did you say that sent him over the edge?"

"HECK IF I KNOW."

"What is he trying to annoy you with anyway?"

"HIS PRESENCE." I motioned towards him, who's attention was momentarily stolen by a colorful, bright-winged butterfly, which he watched with a keen interest. "HE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE VERY SMART."

Wilson gave a small nod. "I've noticed you two are trying to spite each other." I felt his gaze burn into me. "Why don't you two get along."

"WE HAVE ONCE," I pointed out.

"Yes, once, and now you two are back to messing with each other." He sighed. "Aren't you the least bit excited?"

"ABOUT WHAT?"

Joyfulness sparked from him. "Getting to hunt down monsters. One down, four to go..."

"AND WE ALMOST DIED FIGHTING ONE. DO YOU REALLY THINK WE STAND A CHANCE AGAINST THE DRAGONFLY? OR THE ANCIENT GUARDIAN?"

He shifted uneasily. "We don't _know_ the Ancient Guardian is all that bad."

I snorted. "AND _YOU'RE_ SUPPOSED TO BE THE SMART ONE. FROM WHAT WE'VE SEEN SO FAR," I added. "IT'S GOING TO BE BAD."

He was silent for a second, before standing up, stretching, and grabbing his spear. "Come on, it's been a while since we hunted."

"ONLY ABOUT TWO DAYS." I was surprised it hadn't rained again yet.

"Yeah, but I'm hungry. Aren't you?"

"A BIT."

He smiled. "Then let's go." He took a few paces forward, then realized I wasn't following. "Aren't you coming?"

I shrugged. "MAYBE LATER, NOT RIGHT NOW."

He seemed a bit put out, but brightened instantly. "More game for me!"

I shook my head. He had been so child-like lately, almost as giddy as a kid in a candy store. I could tell he was just excited to have beaten the Moose, but still. We had four more beast to kill, did he really think we were going to win that easily?

"You know, it's okay to let him be happy about killing it," Webber turned his attention to me, making me jump.

"I KNOW, BUT HE'S REALLY STARTING TO GET ON MY NERVES."

"Didn't know you had nerves," he commented, circling me. "You always seem irritable."

"IT'S HARD NOT TO BE WHEN YOU'RE STUCK WITH THE TWO BIGGEST MORONS THAT EXISTED," I grumbled.

He stopped. "Then why are we not irritable? Afterall, we have to deal with you all day."

"LOOK, ARE YOU JUST HERE TO ANNOY ME AGAIN?"

"Just trying to get a simple question answered."

"AND WHAT'S THAT?"

"What's her name?"

"WHAT'S _YOUR_ NAME?"

He seemed baffled. "What?"

I shrugged. "INFORMATION FOR INFORMATION."

"And that's information that's none of your business, and we see no harm in knowing your creator's name."

"AND WHAT HARM IS THERE IN KNOWING YOUR NAME, I'VE ALWAYS BEEN CURIOUS, AND I _KNOW_ IT'S NOT WEBBER."

He snickered. "Oh, and how would you know that?"

"WHAT SORT OF NAME IS THAT?"

"What sort of name is WX-78?" He countered.

"A ROBOT'S NAME," I answered simply. " _MY_ NAME."

Sighing, he went back to his spot, sitting back down with a muffled _thump_. "Look, let's just get along for a day, _without trying to pry information from each other."_

"BEEN THERE, DONE THAT, REMEMBER?"

Without warning, he grabbed a nearby rock and threw it at me, which I neatly catching it in a split second. He smiled. "Nice catch."

I dropped it. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?"

"Come on, aren't you going to throw it back?"

Angrily, I threw it with all my might, watching in astonishment as he flicked out his hand and caught it easily. He tossed it between his two hands. I crossed my arms. "WHAT ARE YOU GETTING AT?"

He was silent for a second before throwing the rock high above a treetop. "What we're getting is, Wilson's too busy being super happy and stuff, so, we were thinking, why not be happy as well?"

I snorted. "HAPPY IS FOR IGNORANT MEATLINGS."

He smiled again. "Suits you perfectly!"

I leaped to my feet, quickly searching for a good comeback before he could speak again.

"Come on, you big hunk of metal, loosen up a bit!"

A thought went through my mind, of a promise I made awhile back ago. I was alone, down in the caves, desperately hoping for assistance from Wilson or Webber. Silently, I was telling myself that, if I survived, I would try to take it back, take it all back. I would make it up to him. Now that I was faced with actually doing what I said I would do, it seemed a lot less easy and a lot more useless. I sighed. "FINE."

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

I didn't hunt. I was more of taking a nice stroll through the forest, letting the piles of springy pine needles and gently breeze take my mind away from my situation. Although I was acting childish on the outside, inside I was as worried as ever.

I purposely was sweeping some of the loose dirt and needles away, though, which cut away from the scenic, natural look, but made walking easier. It was truly beautiful, how the branches gently swayed under their own weight. I had to admit, I was glad spring was here.

Sighing, I realized that night would be falling soon, so I set off down the trail towards camp. I took a deep breath, then reluctantly stepped into the clearing that marked our claimed land, but both of them were gone. I groaned. Why couldn't they stay put for once?

Behind me, I heard a twig snap, then a sharp jab to one side, and something big and heavy pushed me over. I shakily looked up from where I lay, expecting to see a giant, but instead seeing WX's face inches away from mine, triumph lighting his gaze.

Behind me, I heard Webber laughing. "Nice catch!" He called to him.

I pushed him off, brushing the dirt from my knees. "What was that for?"

The robot blew off the tip of his spear. "FIRST CATCH OF THE DAY!" He announced.


	25. Chapter 25 Spiders and Lobsters?

_**A/N:**_ **Please don't get the wrong message about this one! Don't think I am! Please! DX As for the question, as previously stated, I will not reveal the answer until the end, but both people who guessed get cookies. (Not saying either are right or wrong) It's going to be a big surprise at the end, and anyone who still wants to guess, go ahead, you might get a slightly melted cookie. (:;) =D**

 **Guest Who Guessed (I really like that title) - (::) - Gets a cookie**

 **lilypaw- (::) - Gets a cookie**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"One... two... three..." We started, listening closely for any footsteps, stick snaps, anything that gave him away. "Eleven... twelve..." Our face was buried in a tree's dark brown bark, our arms just above it. "Twenty-five... twenty-six..."

We counted the seconds, relishing the silence in between. "Forty-eight... forty-nine... fifty!" We looked around, looking for any movement, any sign of him nearby. We saw nothing, and smiled slightly. This was going to be fun.

We were silently running through the pine scented forest, fast but without a sound. Finally, we heard the caw of a buzzard... an enraged one. We peeked out from the dark cover of the forest to see him trying to lure one from the sky, a small piece of meat in front of him, his spear hidden from view.

We ducked back behind the tree, waiting to hear the pained cry echo through the forest then silence. We looked again to see him standing over the buzzard, the bait intact. Suddenly, he turned around, his gaze burning into the tree we hid behind

We held our breath. _Turn away, turn away, turn away!_ After a second, he finally turned back to his kill, casting suspicious glances behind him, then slowly made way towards the tree line. We shrunk back against the bark, hoping our black pelt would blend in with the shadows.

Luckily, he missed us, and started towards, not the camp, but further into the forest. After awhile of following him, we broke through into a clearing. Step after step, we advanced towards him. We prepared ourself, then leaped, bowling him over and making him tumble down the hill.

"WEBBER!?" He angrily pushed us off. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

We stood up, brushing the dirt off of our knees from the tumble. "Following you, why?"

He snorted. "I SHOULD ASK THE SAME QUESTION."

"We were bored. Didn't know we were there, did ya? Working on stealth."

"WHY DON'T YOU BOTHER WILSON?"

We shrugged. "He's too busy being a little kid about the Moose's egg."

He shook his head. "WHY MUST YOU ALWAYS BOTHER ME, THOUGH? WHY NOT DO SOMETHING WITH CHESTER? LIKE PLAY FETCH OR WHATEVER DOG PUMPKIN THINGS DO?"

"You're fun to mess with. Your reaction's hilarious."

He sighed. "WHATEVER. AFTERALL, YOU-" He broke off. "WHAT WAS THAT?"

"What was what?"

He silently pointed down, and we pressed our ear against the moist ground, wet from a recent rain, but we didn't need to. It shook violently, but it didn't affect the surface ground. "EARTHQUAKE?"

"Yeah, it's an underground-" we broke off as something happened, and the next second we were in mid air. "Earthquake!" We managed to finish before we felt something below us and everything was dark.

It took a few seconds to regain consciousness. We weren't sure how long we were out, but we were in a small shaft of light, WX just feet away. "What...?" Our voice felt strange, as if it hadn't been used for awhile. "What happened?"

He looked up, looking slightly more damaged than before. "CAVE-IN," he murmured. We let our eyes adjust to the gloom, but the pure darkness was only a few yards away, not giving us much space to do anything.

"It's happened before?"

He nodded, managing to stand, albeit a bit shakily. "IT SEEMED TO BE WORSE THIS TIME, THOUGH. MAYBE WE WERE ON A HILL THIS TIME, BECAUSE WE PROBABLY WOULD BE IN MUCH MORE TROUBLE IF..." he let his eyeless gaze slide to a small pile of golden rocks next to us. "THAT DIDN'T BREAK OUR FALL."

We forced ourself to sit up, looking at the rock pile. "What is it?"

"I... I'M NOT REAL SURE."

"It made a hole," I pointed out, looking where the rock pile was before we crushed it. Under it, there was a perfectly round hole, as if someone dug it out but didn't want people to find it.

"GOT ANY GRASS?"

We looked around for our backpack. "Yeah, but we can't seem to find the backpack it was in."

He looked into the hole. "FOUND IT," he pointed down into it. Just inside, it was at the edge of the darkness, barely visible in a shaft of sunlight from the hole we created.

"No!" We fell back. "How are we gonna get it?"

WX was silent, looking through his pack, which he found laying a few feet away. "WELL, I THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO INTO THE HOLE," he spoke as if we were stupid.

"Down to go up?"

"YEP."

"Challenge accepted. You coming?"

He nodded. "READY WHEN YOU ARE."

"Um..." we looked down into it, then back at him. "Well, we're not going to be ready for a while-"

"READY NOW, GOT IT." He gave us a sharp jab, forcing us down.

"WX!"

"WHAT?"

"Why did you do that?" We looked up at him. The new floor wasn't as far down as the one to the caves.

He shrugged. "I WAS BORED. COMING DOWN!" He leaped down and landed next to us.

We grabbed our backpack. "Okay, we got the pack, now ba-... WX?"

He was staring into the blackness, then down at the floor. He bent down, feeling the smooth stone. He smiled. "JUST WAIT."

"Wait? For wha-" we were cut off again by the floor becoming lit up in a flash that seemed brighter than the setting sun after the gloom by an eerie red light, pulsing from the floor. "What is this place?"

"THE RUINS," he answered simply. "THIS IS WHERE WE FIND THE ANCIENT GUARDIAN."

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

They had been gone for almost three days now, and I was starting to get worried. The sun was setting, and the fire was lit, but no sign of WX or Webber. I sighed, looking at the Ancient Guardian's page. It was so strange, almost never the same. Almost every time I opened it's page, something was new, mostly new words. I read them out loud. "Waiting... four... Keeper... life... friend... captor..."

The were strange, not a single one making sense. I could only assume they would make full sentences some day, though. Nothing had changed this time. I stared at the gray horn, mesmerized by the small sheen on it. I touched it, closing my eyes and trying to forget about my absent friends.

When I opened them again, though, it seemed to glow for a second slightly to the right of the horn. I shielded my eyes until it went away, and now, there was a small patch of fur, a bit of horn, and a pupil-less eye staring back at me from the page. I stood there, baffled that it changed right before my eyes. _What did they do this time...?_

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

It was weird. The floor, although glowing quite brightly, only seem to be lit where light from the surface was peeking through. _I guess it's just reflective._ Webber looked into the darkness, his eyes wide as he tried to see through it. "Why are we here?" he whispered. "It feels... evil..."

He was right. There was something, that always seemed to be at the edge of vision, at the very edge of sound, that seemed dangerous. "WHAT ARE YOU?" I tried calling to it. It just shrank back.

"WX," he muttered after a moment, a note of fear creeping into his voice. "We're not supposed to be here."

"WE'RE BEING WATCHED."

"We noticed."

It began to step forward. "STAY AWAY!"

I could make out it's eyes first, black as onyxes. It raised it's stone-like claws to the air in a threatening position. Webber held his spear tightly, then jabbed it in it's direction. It roared, then tried to jab at him back. It was powerful enough to make him fly into the darkness.

"WEBBER?" I could smell a sharp metal tang to the air, and it walked away, back into the darkness. _What just happened?_ "WEBBER!"

No reply. Cautiously, we tried to find him in the blackness, using the reflective floor as the only light. Behind me, I heard almost a growling. I groaned. No, not now! I turned, glaring at the spiders that stood before me. "WHAT NOW?"

They looked strange, though. There were three. One was an almost oval shape, with four red eyes and pointed teeth, showing from a mouth that was stuck open. It was blue-gray. Another one was also blue-gray, a strange, scaled shell, a single row of teeth and a single red eye. The third one seemed older than the other two. It was white with the fur coming into three spikes on the top of it's head. It had two red eyes. This is the one then stepped forward.

Then it spoke.

"It seems you have injured one of us," it growled. It was obviously the oldest.

I was baffled. "OF COURSE NOT! HE WAS ATTACKED BY THIS... THIS THING!"

It didn't seem convinced. "Uh huh, and what did this 'thing' look like?"

I tried to remember any details I could make out. "UM... IT HAD STONE-LIKE SKIN, WITH SHINING BLACK EYES, AND..." I couldn't think of anymore.

"Rock lobster?" It asked. "Hmm, strange. They only attack if they've been attacked..."

A hiss from higher up alerted me of the arrival of another one, and a somewhat smaller version of the talking one landed neatly beside me. The oldest one growled something in reply, and I wondered what they were saying.

It narrowed it's eyes. "It seems my daughter has seen the whole thing," he told me. "Very well, I believe you. But right now, we need to get him fixed up."

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH HIM?"

"Just a simple gash," he answered. "No biggie."

"SO HE'LL LIVE?"

A knowing glint appeared in his eyes. "Of course. But," he added. "I do find it strange that you would care at all for a spider. You don't seem to like us very much."

I looked away. "WE'VE BEEN THROUGH A LOT," I admitted. "IT DISGUSTS ME IN EVERY WAY, BUT THERE'S ANOTHER PERSON ON THE SURFACE WHO'LL KILL ME IF I DON'T BRING HIM BACK ALIVE."

He nodded, a hint of humor obvious in his voice. "Just wait here, I'll say, a few days? And he'll be back on his feet. I'll make sure of it."

 _ **Webber's POV**_

We don't really remember much of what happened after the thing attacked us, but we could hear distant voices, just loud enough to make out.

"He's telling the truth, Dad," a more, feminine voice said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Really?" someone answered in reply, and we assumed it was the father.

"It was a rock lobster, he didn't seem to know what it was though, and he got scared," she told him, and the next thing we knew, we were being dragged through the darkness, WX's presence gone. We couldn't struggle into full consciousness, though, so we just let ourself fall into the steady rhythm of sleep.

When we woke again, we could move a bit, though our chest felt strung tightly by something sticky and hot. We tried to look up, but the female voice spoke. "Oh! You're awake! Um, please, don't try to move," she begged. "It'll just make the gash worse."

"Worse?" I managed to say, our voice cracking as if it hadn't been used for awhile.

"Yeah, you got cut up pretty bad. So, I hear you're from the surface."

We managed to catch a glimpse of her, a pure white, with fur spiked towards her head and two gently, almost pinkish, red eyes. "Yeah..."

"What are you called?"

"Called?"

"Or do surface spiders not have names?" She seemed genuinely interested.

"Oh, most don't, but we do. Name's Webber."

"Webber? Hmm, strange name, though I guess it suits for a surface spider. My name's Erika."

"Erika? That sounds almost-"

"Human? Yeah, I know. My dad picked it out."

"So you don't have queens?"

"Queens? Oh, no, my Dad's the leader of all of the spiders down here," she added with a touch of pride.

"Really? That must be pretty cool."

"Yeah, but he can be hotheaded sometimes."

We stifled a laugh. "Can't we all?"

She smiled. "I like you, Webber. You're strange. Then again, I probably seem strange to you."

"Not really, I mean, we're all spiders, right? Don't judge a book by it's cover?"

"Well," she looked shyly at us. "I can tell you're not _completely_ a spider, but I won't press, or tell."

We felt a surge of warmth for the she-spider. She really did get us. "Yeah, it's a complicated story."

"You should be able to leave tomorrow," someone told us, a deeper, much older voice.

"That's my Dad," Erika whispered, then louder, added. "Hey, didn't realize you were here."

He snorted. "More like didn't care I was here. How is he doing?"

"Fine," she answered. "I think you're right, about being able to leave." Was that a note of sadness in her voice? _No, we must've imagined it_.

"How can you find out when tomorrow is?" I asked, completely lost now.

She smiled, as if she was happy she knew something we didn't. "Next Nightmare Cycle," she replied.

"And when's that?"

She looked thoughtful for a second. "A cycle from now?"

"Yes," the elder nodded. "Not too long."

"How can we tell?"

"The ground."

"The _ground?"  
_

"Yes," he rubbed the strange colored turf under him. "The color changes with every cycle."

We looked around, feeling the stiffness starting to dissipate from our limbs as we managed to sit up. The area was lit by cracks in the ground, with threw up a large, reddish beam.

"Those are the Nightmare Lights," Erika chipped in. "They only open like that during certain cycles. The Nightmare Cycle makes them open the most, but release violent monsters from their depths. We strung them up with webs to keep them at bay, so they can't harm us."

"Smart," I murmured.

She nodded, but we sat in silence, waiting for the next phase in the cycle. Many minutes passed, even hours, until the lights fully opened up and the floor was lit with the eerie red as before. "Go now! Quickly!" the elder pressed. "They won't stay open long, and _she_ might come after you in darkness!"

"I'll come with you," Erika offered. "To show you the way."

We smiled. "Thank you."

Slowly, but surely, she led us across the trail back to the beam of light we fell in from. "WX?" I called.

There was no reply at first, but finally, we thought we saw movement from up ahead. He jumped down into the ruins sinkhole, the smell of fresh earth on him. "WEBBER!" he exclaimed. "YOU'RE BACK! ER- I MEAN-"he stuttered a bit when he saw Erika. "UM, HI, WE... BETTER GET BACK TO THE SURFACE. AND... UH..." he sighed. "WEBBER, YOU'RE BEING STALKED BY A SPIDER."

We stifled a laugh, turning to her. "Goodbye, Erika," I murmured. "Maybe I'll see you again?"

"Perhaps, if you come down here again. Goodbye, Webber!"

Solemnly, we turned back to WX, who was awkwardly staring at her and shuffling his feet. We always knew he hated spiders, and seeing us talking to her must've made him feel extremely out of place. "Come on, let's go him."

 _ **A/N:**_ **Now that you've read the chapter (hopefully) you can see why I freaked out earlier. Put away those WX/Webber fanfictions because it is not happening, has never happened, and never will happened. Okay, yes, he doesn't like Erika, but if one of the people your stuck with was talking to one of your fears like it's nothing, of course you're going to feel a bit awkward. And if someone you were stuck with you thought was killed as soon as you started warming up to them, of course you'll be worried, so please read this and don't take it that way. DX That being said, I wanna know what you thought about the chapter. And also, do you feel I'm trying too hard to update commonly? Should I try to take longer on each chapter to make it better? Or do you think the quality hasn't changed or gotten better? I want to update often, but not so often I'm just forcing out bad chapters, and I hope you understand there isn't much to do during spring that I can think of, mostly filler chapters recently. Hopefully, summer will be better. *laughs darkly* Though I am accepting ideas via P.M. for any events that can happen. I have the major ones planned out (including the end) so that's taken care of, but I need ideas for next chapter. Please P.M. me any ideas you guys have, always love getting responses!**

 **Next Cookie Question: What do you think happened that made the new piece of the Ancient Guardian's picture appear?**


	26. Chapter 26 Pop! Goes the Ice Hound!

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __They were finally back. I glanced up, catching WX's gaze before he looked back at Webber, who was lagging a bit behind. That was the first strange thing, WX being faster than Webber. The second strange thing was the first thing WX said to me.

"YEP, WEBBER'S IN LOVE," he announced.

"Are not!" he growled, already seething suggesting that they were bickering for longer than I saw.

"YES YOU ARE."

"What gives you that idea?"

"I DON'T KNOW. 'I HOPE WE SEE EACH OTHER AGAIN.' REALLY?" He sneered, mocking the voice of a female best to his ability, but failing horribly.

"It was a general statement, she was a nice friend!"

"REALLY NICE, I ASSUME?"

"Yes!"

"AH, SO YOU ADMIT IT?"

"Admit what?" Then he thought for a second. "Really? We didn't mean it like that!"

"What's her name?" I tried.

Webber sighed. "Erika," he murmured.

WX smiled. "SO YOU _DO_ ADMIT IT?"

"What?" he seemed to realize his mistake, only adding to his previous anger. "WX! I swear, we will tear you flipping circuits out until your nothing but a pile of gears!" He flinched instantly at his own words.

I didn't say anything about it, but purposely changed my expression to a glare, trying to look at both of them at once. "Why were you guys gone ten days?" I demanded.

They turned to me from their argument. "LONG STORY."

"Yep, very long."

I sat down. "I'm comfortable," I answered, giving them both a smug glance. They finally started, Webber telling the story mostly, and WX filling in on what he saw while Webber was gone. "Ruins, hmm?" I was faintly interested, even though I hardly listened to the story.

"Yeah."

"The entire time?"

"YEP."

I raised an eyebrow, carefully examining them both. WX seemed fine, though there _was_ something off about Webber, not just his lower speed. He was looking around, looking at every movement and noise with hunger, his ribs showing from beneath his fur. _Good heavens!_ I thought in alarm. _He's starving!_

"You okay, Webber?" I asked.

He snapped his attention to me. "Huh? Yeah, we're fine, just a little-" he was interrupted by his own stomach growling.

"When did you last eat?"

He looked thoughtful. "Last time... probably since right before we were trapped down there."

Even WX seemed surprised. "HOW ARE YOU NOT STARVING?!"

He shrugged. "We were unconscious most of the time."

I shook my head, stepping forward to grab his arm. "Come on, your getting something to eat, first of all."

He smiled. "That'd be nice," he admitted.

Finally, I ended up getting both of them to settle down, Webber was happily eating the buzzard, even though he always complained about the taste of buzzards. WX was a bit less enthusiastic. I only just began to realize how long it seemed, being alone for ten days seemed very strange, a bit too quite, a little too strange.

I hadn't gone much anywhere, only leaving the camp, in fact, my own thoughts, for food, but other than that, I mostly stayed put. Obviously, Webber hadn't gone anywhere since he had been attacked by the lobster until today, and WX had gone no farther than the cave opening.

The new cave entrances were everywhere now, making the hollow hill the others fell through look almost like swiss cheese, though everywhere else _seemed_ sturdy enough. A distant growling interrupted my thoughts, though I wasn't even startled. "Hounds," I warned.

The other two nodded, seeming to brighten a bit to be getting back to the old routine. Though when the small group of hounds made their way across the hill crest, I realized with a jolt that two seemed different. Instead of being the pure black like the rest were, they were a light blue, darker stripes like that of a tiger across their backs. One was almost like a puppy, smaller and staying close to the older one, though still participating in the attack.

Webber noticed the strange ones too. "What are those?" he asked, baffled.

"HOUNDS."

"Shut up," he growled, making WX snicker.

The normal ones were easily dealt with, the blue ones were a different story. The small one seemed to disappear, but the older one was twice as vicious and fast as the others, or maybe it just seemed it was faster because every hit it landed made us slower and colder.

But finally, it joined it's companions on the ground. I sighed heavily, wiping a drop of sweat from my forehead. "That was much longer than I thought it would be," I admitted.

Webber looked around. "We're the other one?"

"The puppy?" I glanced at WX. If anyone had the heart to kill the puppy, it was him.

He shrugged. "I DIDN'T KILL IT."

Behind us, I heard a low, mournful howl, and turned to face it. The small hound leaned over the larger blue hound, letting out another yowl. Webber walked over to it, leaning down to touch it. "Don't touch it you idiot!" I was ready to push him aside when he shot me a quick glare.

"Oh come on! Have you no heart?" He hissed. "It's just a puppy, what could he do? Lick you to death?" He snorted. He petted it a few times, and the look it gave him was trusting, and it burrowed it's head into his hand. Webber then shot a gaze full of triumph, then asked, "Can we keep him?"

"KEEP HIM? I-" I silenced him with a glare.

"Maybe, but what would we do with him."

"KEEP HIM? WILSON, HAVE YOU LOST IT? THIS IS A KILLING MACHINE YOUR TALKING ABOUT."

"Yes, and it's a killing machine I'm talking to, you've no right to talk."

He took a step forward, not sure what he wanted, probably strike me, but didn't say anything else.

"Okay, that's settled. Now, what's his name?" I asked, my question directed at Webber. "And do you think he'll get along with Chester?"

"Why shouldn't he? He's just a puppy, and we could probably raise him to be on our side. And for his name..." He looked thoughtful, then he smiled. "Popsicle."


	27. Chapter 27 The Hunting Party

_**Popsicle's POV**_

 __I snuggled close to my mother, breathing in her cool, yet welcoming scent. Our leader, a dark brown dog with a long snout, large teeth, and threatening white eyes, Varg, was looking over us, assessing our skills. My mother and father were once a pair of hunting hounds, owned by a, as my mother said, giant walrus and his son.

After a hunting season gone awry, there wasn't enough food for them all, so he released the two, promising that he would find more and continue to live. My parents then were found by this group, a very large gang of hounds that relied on each other, and taken in. My father was killed before I was born, in a hunting raid against a beefalo herd, so it was just my mom and I.

Varg was saying, "Today, we will send out our hunting parties once more." He looked over us again. "We will hopefully find enough food to feed us until next time. I have decided, that the following will go," I didn't recognize any of the names, so I was relieved, knowing almost every hunting party was killed one way or another, and I was only a few weeks old, not old enough to live without my mother. "They will go after the beefalo. As for the humans," his voice dropped to a low growl. "Only our strongest will go after them. Pepper, Gywn, Sophie, and..." he thought for a second. "Kyra."

As he spoke my heart pounded, and as he spoke my mother's name, it skipped a beat, and I nearly cried. Not a single hound ever survived them. I stepped up. "If she's going," my voice was high-pitched with youth. "Then I'm going too!"

I tried not to flinch as his gaze was swept towards me. "You think your ready? You're very young, and your mother's the strongest hound here."

It was true. Her days as a hunting hound had made her strong and compact, ready to face any challenge thrown at her way. She looked down at me, her eyes glittering with concern. "Are you sure? They're very dangerous."

I pushed even closer to her. "Wherever your going, I want to be there also."

She didn't reply for a moment, then turned to Varg. "He's ready."

He nodded. "Then you will join your mother's party, but don't take risk, and if something very bad happens, run!"

I was shaking, but my voice was clear as I said, "Okay, sir."

"Okay, we will attack now. Parties, go to your areas. You know what to do. As for you, pup, stay with your mother."

I obeyed, thinking that I wouldn't separate from her even if he told me to. "Ready?" she asked. She was leading the group.

"As I'll ever be."

She looked to the sky and howled, my ears piecing as the other three joined in. "Let's hunt!" she exclaimed, then ran as fast as she could down the hill crest, letting me to be pushed down by the rest of the party. As we crested another hill, I looked to the clear blue sky and swallowed back a cry of pain and sorrow. I had a feeling that I wouldn't see that beautiful sky ever again.

They looked strange, our targets. All three were standing on two legs, one seemed to be made of a stone-like material, shiny for some reason. One of the others had spiked black hair, but that's the only detail I could make out, and the last was all black, almost like a spider I saw crawling past our home once. But all three of them were quick and fierce, and before I understood what happened, Pepper, Gywn, and Sophie lay, not moving, on the ground, but with my mother still fighting, even though she was horribly outnumbered. The one with the shiny skin jabbed her so hard and quick, she flew a few feet back, not even twitching as she skidded through the grass.

"Mom!" I cried, leaping towards her. Luckily, our targets didn't seem to notice me. I buried my face into her fur. "Come on!" _I'm so sorry! I won't be with you where you are! Please don't leave me! I need you!_

She didn't respond, and I knew instantly that my fear came true. Then, I did what any other terrified puppy would do. I sat sadly down, tipped my head to the sky, and howled my despair to the sky. I felt their eyes burning into me, but I didn't care. I yowled again, my small body shaking with sobs. I looked up to see the spider-like one offering a hand.

I buried my face into his hand, instantly trusting him. Afterall, he was the only one that didn't even try to kill any of them, just defend himself. I heard the harsh, cold, metallic voice of the shiny one, and anger welled up inside me. He was the one that killed my mother. I buried my face deeper into his hand. I trusted him. For the next few days, I stayed close to him, which I later learned his name being Webber.

He rubbed my head which was one of the best things ever, and I enjoyed every second of it, begging for more each time. He also was the only one that gave me food, and I even was beginning to train as a hunting dog. Afterall, I was a hound, the child of two great hunters, so it was in my blood. I needed someone to look after me. I was barely old enough to be away from my mother, and I was already alone. Well, I had Webber, and I wasn't a big fan of Wilson, but I completely hated WX-78. I refused to go near him.

He didn't seem to care, and stayed away from me when possible. I was happy, but there was something missing. I was becoming quite the hunter, as my legs grew longer and I grew smarter, but I kept waiting for something. In my heart, I knew I wouldn't find it for a very long time, but that didn't stop me from wanting it and looking for it until the time, in the far future, until I found it.


	28. Chapter 28 Thoughts Become Actions

_**Webber's POV**_

 __"I HATE THIS STUPID RAIN!" WX exclaimed, sheltering under a pine. It had been raining ever since we came back up to the surface, about three days ago, and almost everywhere was flooded except for higher land. Our base had been completely washed away, and we were near the hill full of cave entrances, because the water that came up the hill usually fell into the holes and thus, out of mind. The only one still having trouble was WX, who hated the rain more than all of us combined. Even Wilson was reluctant to leave the dry areas.

We were more than happy to go out in the endless rain, giving in to the urge to splash and play in the flooded areas, but most of all, we usually did all the hunting during this endless rain. Well, there was another one that helped us with hunting. "Sure must be glad Popsicle and I are happy enough to go out in this weather," I told him, stifling a laugh at the glare he gave us.

"I WOULDN'T BE GLAD ANYTHING THAT MANGY MUTT DOES," he muttered.

Popsicle didn't seem to like him... at all. In fact, the two could be seen at each other's throats almost as often as we were, one glaring, the other snarling. Despite this, they never seemed to attack each other. _Why does Popsicle hate him?_ Is it because the arrogant robot couldn't like anyone other than himself, and he could tell? _Impossible._ There was something in his eyes, the amount of hate that the hound felt, that made it much more than that.

He was stretched out on our lap as we leaned against a tree, dozing contently as we gently petted the water droplets off of his glistening, frosty fur. He was young, also, and thus he played in the water with us, making him almost always soaked to the skin, but never seeming to mind. He was just happy to be alive, afterall, he _did_ watch his entire group get killed around him.

He stirred, looking up at us for a second before yawning and standing up, shaking the last of the rain drops off of his cold fur, then sitting to clean himself. We stifled a laugh. He looked like a cat when he did that. The grass was muddy and soaked, and he was soon brown with mud again. Briefly, we thought worriedly about Erika. _Maybe she drowned..._ we thought, fearful for a second before relaxing. _This probably isn't the first flood she's been through._

We though angrily about WX's snide comments about her. _We shouldn't have told him what she said. We should've known he would never leave us alone._ Even now, powerless against the water as he was, he didn't drop the subject.

"YOU LOOK WORRIED," he commented.

We shook our head. We weren't going to let him know our fears.

"THINKING ABOUT YOUR 'FRIEND'?" he sneered. "SHE _WASN'T_ JUST A FRIEND, WASN'T SHE? I SAW THE WAY YOU TWO LOOKED AT EACH OTHER."

Although the only thing we wanted to do was wipe that sneering look off of his face, but every threat we made, or even thought about, brought us back to our vision. _Are we destined to kill Wilson and WX?_ "Look! Would you just leave us alone?"

He didn't even flinch. "OH, SORRY, DIDN'T REALIZE YOU WERE HAVING 'PROBLEMS'. IS IT YOUR TIME- OH, YOUR TOO YOUNG TO KNOW THAT. YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT LIKE _I'M_ THE ONE DYING HERE."

 _Good, then you'll leave us alone?_ We felt instantly guilty again. However annoyed we got with each other, we didn't want any of them dead. We felt Popsicle stiffen up, keeping one eye on WX and curling his mouth in the beginning of a snarl.

"OH GOOD. A MOODY SEVEN YEAR OLD SPIDER _AND_ A MENTAL HOUND. I'M _SO_ TERRIFIED."

"He's not mental!"

"YOU SAY THAT NOW," he muttered.

"Look who's talking about metal! We're speaking to a sparking paperweight!"

" _PAPERWEIGHT?_ I AM NO PAPERWEIGHT."

It was our turn to have the sneering tone. "Let's see, the last thing you did anything useful was...three days ago? Almost four? Yeah, I'd say that's a paperweight."

"We're having enough trouble as it is," Wilson pointed out, making us jump. "I don't need you two trying to kill each other again."

"Why not?"

"IT'S WHAT WE DO BEST."

"I don't care what you do best, what I do care about is living until this rain stops."

"AND AFTER?"

"Afterwards we go back to waiting for summer to fight the Dragonfly."

"What's so intimidating about a wimpy little dragonfly?" I grumbled. He'd been going off about that all three days it had been raining. At least he stopped going on and on about the Moose egg shell.

" _Wimpy little dragonfly?_ I'll tell you it's far from _wimpy._ "

"Oops," I whispered, just loud enough for WX to hear.

"NOW YOU'VE DONE IT," he grunted.

We very well knew that once Wilson got on one of his rants, it could take all day for him to finish... and it did. "And that is why, I tell you, this thing is _not_ a wimp," he finished.

"Mhmm, great," I murmured, barely keeping our eyes open. "Next time we can't sleep, I'm finding Wilson!" I exclaimed to WX.

He broke a small smile. "NOT SURPRISED. HE COULD PROBABLY PUT AN INSOMNIAC TO SLEEP A MILE AWAY WITH HIS RAMBLINGS."

"I heard that!" he flashed crossly.

That night, we all felt wariness drag at our feet. The ground was getting muddier and, even up here, small pools were starting to form. Popsicle and I were most tired, and drifted off occasionally only to be woken seconds later by a large raindrop. When we finally managed to fall asleep, we were plagued by nightmares.

We were chasing a rabbit, nearly catching up to it and leaping on it to kill it. Once we stabbed it, though, we were flung back a few paces and into some dark area, where a single light flashed on a pile of mangled, rusty metal parts...

Just beyond it, eyes shone from the darkness, and a shape stepped into the spotlight. "What a fight!" He praised, eyes glowing.

We jumped back. "Who are you?" I cried.

"Why, don't you recognize me?" He walked around us in a circle. "I'm you."

"Wha-what happened?" Fear edged our voice. We didn't want to know.

He shrugged "A simple fight. Quite one-sided, don't you think?" He kicked the pile, sending a chunk of metal spiraling towards us and landing inches away from our feet. "He was always a weakling."

Fear turned to terror as we realized what is was telling us again. "No!" I cried. "This isn't what we wanted!"

"Really? Then what did you want?"

Several seconds of silence followed. "We didn't want him dead..."

"You've thought it enough times, have you not? And you know what they say," he paused, letting the words echo for a second before dropping his voice to a whisper. "Your thoughts become your actions."

We sat up quickly, pure panic making our heart pound. _Your thoughts become your actions._ The words seemed to swim in our head. Fear gripped us so tight in it's clutches we could hardly breathe, let alone realize it stopped raining in the night. Were we...

Were we meant to _kill_ WX?


	29. Chapter 29 Voices

_**WX-78's POV**_

I was used to hearing voices in my head. Of course, that doesn't mean I'm crazy, it's natural for almost any AI, especially where I was built. I had my own thoughts, the only thing I really listen to. I also had two others. One was the scathing voice of my creator, only speaking whenever I messed something up really bad. The third was a much deeper voice which I didn't recognize and rarely spoke. This part of me was what took over my thoughts whenever I was scared or worried, only making it worse.

I was used to it, though, as any AI would get eventually. It wasn't hard. Afterall, I _did_ hear them from the day I was created. The rain seemed to have awoken the other two voices, and my creator was stating how 'sad it was I was being so useless' while the other voice remained silent unless I tried to reply to _it._

Webber was being strange. Ever since the rain stopped, he refused to look at me, or even go near me. _What's gotten into him?_

 _"Maybe he's seen what your actually like."_

 _"Perhaps he's seen something that spooked him."_

 _That's crazy talk! He's having no trouble with Wilson!_

He would only go near him, often gone whenever I was home and home while I was gone. There were many possibilities, but none of them made sense. _Maybe I shouldn't have teased him so much about Erika._

 _"Nonsense! He was practically begging for it!"_

I sighed. For once, I wished they would just shut up and pale into insignificance like they had been. Finally, they stopped speaking, and my head was clear enough for my own thoughts again. _About time too._

Popsicle bounded into camp, a couple of small rabbits hanging from his jaws. He dropped them when he saw me, then bared his teeth in a growl. "DO YOU THINK I'M SCARED OF YOU?"

 _"No."_ Someone replied, but it wasn't any of the voices I was used to. _"I_ know _your scared of me._ "

I jumped, looking around hurriedly for whoever spoke. Nothing. I turned back to Popsicle, who was now cleaning his foot in a cat-like fashion, one eye fixed on me. I wondered briefly if he said something I could understand, but he gave no clue as he turned to clean the other.

 _Great, now I'm imagining things. Just great._ The voices didn't reply. Surprisingly enough, I had the least programmed voices than any other AI there, and one of three to have emotions. Sure, AIs had learned to not hate each other in the past, and become friends, but those weren't _real_ feelings, and they sure the heck weren't programmed for it.

I felt Popsicle's gaze burn into me, angry and vengeful, like he had a personal grudge against me. I saw Wilson and Webber turn up behind them, but Webber refused to meet my gaze and made no move to go towards me. Wilson had an almost excited gleam in his eye. "The floods have gone down," he announced. "We can go home, now."

Silence greeted his words, and he seemed a bit put out. "Isn't that good?"

I sighed. "WE'RE NOT GOING HOME," I murmured. "DON'T YOU REALIZE? THAT'S NOT OUR HOME. OUR HOME IS SOMEWHERE... SOMEWHERE FAR AWAY FROM HERE."

He seemed sad now. "Yes, yes I know. But for now, this is the best we've got."

 _"Pretty poor best."_

 _Shut up!_ I thought angrily. _For once in my life stop being such a nuisance!_

He looked down at Popsicle. "What's Pop's problem?" He asked, his question directed mostly at Webber, it seemed.

He didn't say anything, so I had to. "I WISH I KNEW. HE'S BEEN GLARING ME DOWN SINCE HE CAME BACK."

"Wait," he said, bending over to look at me more closely, then straitening up again with a smile. "You called him a him."

I felt hot with embarrassment. "WELL, I... I COULDN'T JUST CALL HIM AN _IT._ " _He's not one, and only_ it _I will call_ it.

"There's more to the story, I can tell," he commented. "But, I won't pester you to tell me unless you want to."

I didn't say anything.

"I'll take that as a no. Alright then. Oh, and also," he added. "you've been under that pine for at least two days after the rain now. Don't you think you can do something productive?"

"LIKE WHAT?"

"Anything!"

"I AM DOING SOMETHING," I objected. "I'M SITTING UNDER A TREE, WAITING FOR THE FLOODWATERS TO BE GONE FOR GOOD."

He rolled his eyes. "For crying out loud! Then don't go through the flooded areas!"

"WELL THERE GOES ABOUT HALF OF THE WORLD."

He didn't say anything, just glared at me. Webber murmured something to him, and he sighed. "I guess your right. We'll both leave you alone to sulk in the shadows." He patted his knees. "Come on, Pop," he called.

He had a thing about not calling Popsicle Popsicle. It was in my coding to be as formal as possible when it came to names, so I certainly didn't give nicknames, and the only way I'd speak one is if I wasn't sure of their actual name or I thought it was their actual name. Even then, I could hardly call him by name, in fact, I never called him by name. _Just the kind of name Webber would come up with._

 _"And what kind of name is Otto Von Chesterfield Esquire?"_

 _That wasn't my idea!_

 _"You went with it, though."_

If I could, I probably would've strangled it. _Shut up already!_

The ice hound happily followed him, ignoring the half-eaten rabbit he tucked into minutes before. At that moment, I was convinced I hated everything. "I HATE WEBBER, I HATE WILSON," I grumbled. "I HATE POPSICLE, I HATE CHESTER, I HATE EVERYTHING! WHY AM I STUCK HERE WITH ALL OF THEM!" I didn't think about my memories prior to this mess. If I would've, I probably would've remembered that it was ten times smoother sailing here than where I was built.

I heard a sigh behind me, and I flipped around to see who was behind me. Webber leaned up against a tree, barely making eye contact but more than he had been recently. "We know what you mean," he murmured, his voice sad. "We've felt that way too."

My anger spilled over. "NO YOU HAVEN'T! YOU'VE NEVER HAD TO DEAL WITH WHAT I'VE DEALT WITH!"

"Oh?" He seemed faintly interested. "Really? And what have you dealt with?"

"YOU HAVE NO CLUE. WHERE DO I BEGIN?"

" _We_ have no clue? Obviously, you haven't the foggiest idea either."

"HAVE YOU NOTHING BETTER TO DO THAN MESS WITH ME? AREN'T YOU SUPPOSED TO BE WITH WILSON?"

He shrugged. "We went out earlier."

His guarded answers were making me more agitated. "AND WHY HAVEN'T YOU BEEN TALKING?"

"You really don't know?" Surprise sparked from him, than his voice dropped. "So we're the only one."

"WHAT? THE ONLY ONE WHAT?"

"We've been plagued by nightmares, over and over," he whispered. "Each more terrible than the last. And I tell you, WX, that these nightmares will come true." He turned away. "We can feel it."


	30. Chapter 30 Rising Storm

_**A/N:**_ **So I know you're all dying to know about the cookie question. [Not really, but stay with me =)]**

 **Question: What causes the addition to the page of the Ancient Guardian?**

 **Answer: Anything that directly has to do with it or it's awakening will cause a new piece of the picture, and anything that has to do with the ruins causes a word.**

 **Guest: (::) Cookie!**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

They were training for the Dragonfly. "COME ON, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE FAST ONE HERE!" WX exclaimed as he dodged Webber's attack, sweeping his feet out from under him and making him land in the hot dust.

"You never said you were going to do that!" He complained.

He snorted. "IN BATTLE, IS YOUR OPPONENT GOING TO TELL YOU WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO?"

He looked down at his feet. "Well, could you at least give us another shot at it?"

Reluctantly, he nodded. "FINE, BUT BE QUICKER THIS TIME."

We had been training like this during the past two weeks. I trained yesterday with WX, and now, it was their turn to duel. WX didn't get tired, so he trained with us almost every day. I felt a spark of interest as Webber made no move to lunge, waiting for WX to strike first. He faked an attack, making Webber think that he was going one way, but he saw a glimmer of excitement when he saw the trick before he lost again, and straightened up again.

It just so happened, how he was positioned, that when he tried to stand straight again, WX thrust out his arm and close-lined him, and he fell to the ground with a muffled 'thump'.

"HAD ENOUGH?" He sneered. "COME ON, WE JUST GOT STARTED."

Usually, I managed to beat him easily, and Webber did too. I began to wonder what gotten into him. He seemed a bit distracted. I remember WX saying something about dreams Webber told him about. Maybe he had another.

I was tempted to tell them to calm down, but I knew they wouldn't, so I watched quietly. "NO! YOU GOT IT ALL WRONG!" WX exclaimed. "YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO WATCH MY HANDS, NOT MY LEGS!"

"But you'll trip us again!" He protested.

"LEGS MAY TRIP, BUT HANDS CAN CAUSE PAIN. WHAT IF I WAS HOLDING A WEAPON?"

"You'd hurt us."

He snorted. "I'LL HURT YOU ANYWAY. THE DIFFERENCE IS, I'D HURT YOU MORE. NOW WOULD I BE HOLDING IT WITH MY FEET?"

"No," he muttered.

"HOW WOULD I BE HOLDING IT?"

"With your hands."

"EXACTLY."

My interest grew as they spoke. To me, they sounded like they had been best friends for years, despite the sneering tone WX had, I had a feeling that Webber ceased to be bothered by it or even notice it was there. I smiled. The Dragonfly was going to be rough, so it was good the two rivals were coming together to fight it.

"Shouldn't one of us hunt?" I asked, thinking of it it moments before.

"No need," Webber replied without looking at me. "Pop's on the job."

I nodded. Of course he would send his little pet to hunt while we trained. I had to admit, I was beginning to really like the hound, and I could tell WX was too. "Right, um," I tried to think. "Is there anything left to do?"

"Why?" He asked, still focused on beating WX. "You bored?"

I had to admit, I was starting to become bored. "A bit."

"I DON'T KNOW," came WX's irritated reply. "FIND SOMETHING. WE'RE BUSY HERE- NO!" He cut himself off. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO AIM FOR THE NECK." He had traced his rival's gaze. "I SAID THE STOMACH! IT'S A MUCH BIGGER TARGET THAN THE NECK AND IT'S JUST AS VULNERABLE."

I tried to think. Food was taken care of, training was going on. A feeling crept over me, a strange feeling I haven't felt in a while, and I smiled widely. I knew this feeling well. It was time for science!

Maybe if I could figure out a way to build a fire pit that made you cold instead of warm, it would make summer easier! Then logic hit me. What are the odds of being able to build an endothermic fire pit? Then again, this world's crazy logic might just make it possible.

I crept over to the alchemy engine, another thing I built in my spare time. Whenever I was near it, I felt powerful, smarter almost, and I could think of ideas and things to build that I couldn't do with the science machine.

It took all day but I finally figured it out. The dust and dirt in front of the engine was scuffed and covered with lines and words that only a true scientist could interpret. "WHAT IS THAT?" WX scoffed. "ANOTHER THING TO CLUTTER UP THE PLACE?"

I took no notice of his barbed comments. Beads of sweat formed on my forehead and I wiped them away, looking at the fire pit. It was blue, made of a special rock called nitre that had a chemical reaction with the gold infused into it, giving it a blue color and this normally explosive material into a machine that, when reaction with heat as extreme as that of a fire, forced it out as cold air, heating the rock to an unbearable temperature but making the surrounding area as cool as in the middle of winter.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"An endothermic fire pit!" I exclaimed proudly.

"A who-duh-what-now?"

"A COLD FIRE."

"Ah." He thought for a second. "Is that even possible?"

I shrugged. "Apparently, I did it."

"HOW?"

"You really want to know? I can explain all of the science behind it if you want."

"No thanks!"

"I'M GOOD!"

I smiled and stifled a laugh. "Aw, you're no fun!"

"Summer's approaching, so don't you think we need to prepare?" Webber pointed out.

"How can we prepare more than we already have?" I wondered aloud.

He shrugged. "We don't know. We just feel," he seemed lost for words. "We feel like something really horrible's about to happen."

I had to admit, I was feeling the same thing. Something deep in my gut told me that something was going to happen. I purposely never said anything, though, because I never wanted to scare the kid. "It's probably nothing," I answered quickly. "Just your imagination getting the best of you."

He narrowed his eyes. "You're lying," he growled. "We can tell as easily as we can tell when it's wet weather on the way. WX doesn't feel it…" He looked away. "Don't lie to us. We know we're younger than either of you-"

"NOT EXACTLY," WX interrupted.

"What?"

He looked uncomfortable and shuffled his feet as if he wished the world would swallow him whole or just didn't say anything. "WELL, YOU SEE…" He sighed. "I WAS ONLY BUILT…" His voice became too low to hear. Webber heard it though, and he laughed.

"Four years! Oh this is rich! We always thought _we_ were the youngest! And yet, the worst temper and most arrogant one is four years younger than us!"

"Four?" I asked. "I thought you were seven?"

He looked down. "We turned eight somewhere near the beginning of spring," he murmured.

I felt my heart ache for the half-spider. He had gone so long without any celebration of anything. I patted him on the back. "Nice job living so long," I whispered to him.

He playfully shoved me away. "Yeah, but we've had to live off of you guys."

"You got Popsicle."

He barely contained a laugh. "We never even tried thinking when I was very little about what happened in our life. Getting eaten by a spider, being stuck with a arrogant robot and nutjob scientist, a pumpkin-dog thing named Chester, and now, a blue dog named Popsicle! What a life!"

I was glad he was being cheerful again, back to his normal self. He had filled out again also, since his ordeal with the ruins, and was looking stronger than ever. "You two train well together."

"What? With him?" He snorted. "Because he won't let us stop until we have every single detail right. We may as well try to get it right."

"Don't you ever have fun anymore."

He sat down with an exaggerated sigh. "How can we when we have a walking paperweight constantly making sure we never do!" 

"WELL, A CERTAIN 'WALKING PAPERWEIGHT' WOULD LIKE TO REMIND YOU THAT WHEN YOUR LIFE IS ON THE LINE, IT'S BETTER TO BE SERIOUS THEN HAVE FUN AND STARVE," Webber jumped up quickly, and flipped around, eyes wide as WX stood behind him calmly.

"You gave us a heart attack!" He exclaimed. "Don't do that!"

"AW, BUT THEN _I'D_ HAVE NO FUN!"

"You don't allow us to have fun!" He protested.

"BUT I'M BETTER," he sneered. "YOU'RE JUST A PUNY _HALF-BREED_."

My eyes widened. Did he really just say that? Webber's eyes were fearful, then sad, then angry. "We are no half-breed," he whispered, his voice barely audible but filled with rage all the same. He snapped his gaze to rest on the robot's eyeless face. "And you had better back off."

"OH? AND WHO'S GONNA MAKE ME?" He clearly noticed Webber's change in mood, and there was much less fire in his voice.

He glanced at me at the corner of his eye, and I nodded slightly. A deep growl rumbled in his throat, then he leaped at WX.

He seemed to guess what he would do, and moved to the side to dodge him, not expecting to spider to flip around quicker than I could blink and use the full force of the leap once more into his advantage, making the robot topple over into the dirt. "THAT'S BETTER!" he exclaimed. "THAT'S HOW YOU DO IT!"

I made no move to calm either of them down. They started it, they could finish it. And besides, I thought, I do believe Webber deserved the chance to thrash his rival into obedience. WX had it coming. His jibes were getting far to personal.

"We are no half-breed," Webber snarled. "and we will _not_ take your insults any longer!" Although Webber was far lighter than WX, he soon was winning, pinning his arms and legs on the scuffed up ground, his teeth bared inches away from his face. "Got it, _paperweight_?"

He didn't say anything, he didn't need to. He saw the fury in his eyes as well, and seemed more than willing to back off. He didn't look away from his gaze though, and Webber soon stood up again, allowing the robot to stand up and brush the dirt and dust off of himself. Without a word he turned and stalked off, passing by me muttering "BETTER THAN I'D EXPECT FROM A HALF-BREED SCUM."

With a sinking feeling, I realized that the one-sided fight had still not put an end to his arrogance, and the furious gaze boring into my back made me realize that Webber had heard the comment also, but said nothing, silently fuming as he stared at his defeated enemy gait into the dark shadow cast by the trees against the warm spring sun.

 **Okay, next cookie question! Pay close attention since the answer is given, though you have to pay a bit of attention. What was Webber's real name? Answer given whenever I post Chapter 35. Good luck and good day!**


	31. Chapter 31 Summer Jobs

_**WX-78's POV**_

The next day brought a scorching hot wind. I looked up, letting the sun rest on my face, and I quickly looked down. Although I couldn't sweat exactly, I had a certain cooling system that made drops of condensation run down the length of my body, and tiny sparks flew in their wake.

"Why is it so hot!?" Webber complained, resting with Popsicle under a tree, Chester sitting paces away, completely oblivious to the heat.

"It's summer already?" Wilson asked, looking up at the sky. "I thought we'd have a few more days of fall at least."

"WHAT ABOUT THAT FIRE PIT, WILSON?" I suggested.

He brightened. "That's a great idea!" He exclaimed. "Nice thinking, WX."

I gave a noncommittal grunt as he examined it for many seconds, then threw small logs into it, watching in amazement as blue flames devoured them quickly, burning bright and cold. Webber sighed contently. "Much better," he murmured sleepily.

"WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO FOR FOOD AND WOOD EVENTUALLY," I pointed out. "WE CAN'T STAY FOREVER."

They were both silent. _"Look at him,"_ one growled as I glared at Webber. _"How could such a pathetic creature beat you?"_

I felt a sharp comment in my throat that I nearly exclaimed out loud, then I realized it was _them_ again. _It was a practice bout!_ I thought angrily.

" _Oh yes, you beat the living crap out of each other because you were practicing,"_ it mocked. At least the other voice, the one I didn't recognize, was being quiet. _It_ was the only one speaking.

I tried to tear my mind away from it, shooting a glare at Webber, who had fallen asleep after Popsicle crawled onto his lap. The hound was still awake, his glare as hot as the sun on my back as he lay down, one eye on me.

Wilson clearly saw my glare, because he was looking at me with the look that said "Don't you dare even think about it."

If I could, I would've rolled my eyes at him. I wasn't the one freaking out about little things. I wasn't the one that had a darn heart attack about a stupid dream. I wasn't the one who needed watching. The one who was all these things was resting under that tree with the hound on his lap.

I'd never done anything wrong. I might've teased him, but the only one to ever attack the other was Webber. Then again, I thought ruefully, I guess I provoked said fights. I snorted. He deserved them.

I looked at the place around me. It just started and already the ground seemed to have waves of heat pouring from it, and the trees looked scorched. There was many moments of silence. Eventually, the blue fire began to fizzle and it died. By this time, the almost endless day was turning into a dusk that I knew wouldn't last very long that brought the slightest relief from the heat.

Neither of them were awake now, and Webber was occasionally twitching and whimpering, and I could tell it wasn't a good dream. The Dragonfly was the last thing on my mind, even though it's what we've been training for the whole time. I put more wood on the fire.

The night was far too short, and the burning sun once more sliced through the air in what felt like minutes, and Wilson yawned and stretched. Webber leaped to his feet at the slightest noise, eyes wide with fear. "Calm down!" Wilson exclaimed at him. "It's just us!"

He looked frantically around for a few more seconds.

"Just us," he repeated, and he relaxed a bit.

"Sorry," he murmured. "Bad dream."

I snorted. "I COULD TELL," I muttered.

He shot a glare at me, but didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at Wilson. "We gonna have to get wood?" he asked.

"Probably," Wilson answered. "After all, we really should stock up on it. But don't forget," he added. "we still have to fight the Dragonfly-"

"No!" Webber exclaimed, jumping back.

He shrunk back as both of our gazes fell on him. "What's wrong?"

He looked around fearfully, then shook his head. "N-nothing. Sorry, we- we were just thinking about something else."

Wilson's gaze was sympathetic, making my cold glare seem like a stone. _What a baby_.

 _"He's only eight,"_ one voice pointed out, and I realized, quite annoyingly I may add, that said voice was my own thoughts.

Wilson shot me an angry glance because of my indifference. I shrugged. I didn't need to answer to a half spider or insane scientist. I was merely myself, nothing more, nothing less. It was how I was built, arrogant, yes, but not caring one way or another and wanting to just be alone. _It_ was the same way, so I guess I inherited some of _it's_ attitude. Then again, _it_ was secretive and, of one ever found out any truth about _it_ , _it_ would make them wish they hadn't, I shuddered.

I was one of those. I knew something I shouldn't have, and I nearly payed with my life. Instead, I payed with my sanity being stuck with these two morons.

 _All bots are built the same way, with the same objective. It keeps them in check. They are programmed to only do a specific thing and nothing else, and must be as far from being human as possible. They have no emotions to confuse them. They have no feelings._ I remembered _it's_ words. Then I remembered what _it_ added about me. " _But this one's different. He can think for himself, he has feelings. He can be sad, happy, depressed, proud, excited, distressed. Yes, he has it in his code, but that's not his objective. His looks, as human-like as possible, his attitude, so much like..._ _it_ had cut off there. _He has two goals. The question is, will he meet up to expectations._ Followed by a satisfied, _You will be perfect._

I closed my 'eyes'. I remembered the vision I had of _it_ setting the two objects in front of me, the egg and the eye. Except this time, only the eye remained. Now I saw something near me; a shining horn lit up by a faint blue light.

I had seen this many times, and it was as confusing as the first time I saw it. I realized that Webber's vision was about the tooth and the horn, and I opened my 'eyes' again wide. No wonder he had been so terrified. He must've seen something that had to do with the tooth. No wonder he didn't want to fight the Dragonfly.

He refused to tell anything about it except for the two items. Then I remembered the fight we had the day before. Although his voice was filled with as much venom and anger as _it's_ , his attacks were halfhearted and careful. I stopped, terror beginning to wipe out everything else in my mind.

Had Webber's vision shown something bad happening to me? Had he seen my... _death?_ _Or maybe_ , I tried reasoning. _Maybe he saw me getting injured, or he was mistaken._ I tried to comfort myself with these words, but the harder I tried, the more convinced I was my initial thought was real, and, despite the heat, I shivered.


	32. Chapter 32 Echoes of the Past

_**A/N:**_ **Okay, I know that it hasn't been 5 chapters yet, but this chapter pretty much is a dead give away of the answer, so I'm just gonna say.**

 **Guest: Thank you so much! I was worried that no one would get it. For those of you who didn't know, try reading the first paragraph of the whole story. The answer is right there. I'll post the next question at the bottom of this chapter. (::) (::) (::) Three cookies!**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"More hot weather," I growled, wiping away a sweat drop from our forehead. "It's stupid!"

"It's summer," Wilson pointed out.

"AND SIX DAYS INTO IT WITHOUT SIGHT OF THE DRAGONFLY!" WX exclaimed.

Wilson shrugged. "I guess she'll show up on her own time."

"IT'D BETTER BE SOON," he grumbled, turning over on the ground. "IT'S TOO HOT OUT HERE! WINTER WASN'T THIS BAD!"

We sighed heavily, vague memories of playing as a child under the sun flickered through our mind. "We miss life before this happened," I murmured, not even sure if we meant before the spider incident or trapped in this heinous world.

They both were silent, watching the blue fire flickering, until Wilson broke it. "Is it hard? You know..."

We nodded, nostalgia making our heart ache. "It's very hard."

"OH, WHAT'S WRONG?" WX sneered. "YOU SCARED OF A LITTLE HARDSHIP?" His voice seemed flat, despite the comment.

We weren't in the mood. "Uh-huh," I muttered absently.

"ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?"

"That's good."

"I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING LIKE THAT!"

"Really? Interesting."

Wilson looked amused, and WX looked pure annoyed. At least it got him off our back. He gave a 'hmph' and turned away. We shot a winning look at him but he failed to notice. Even though it was daytime, tiredness dragged at us. The long days and short nights gave little time for sleep, since at night we'd bring our torches out and try to do as many chores as possible.

We yawned, and Wilson shot a sympathetic look at us. "Why don't you just sleep? We're obviously not going anywhere today." 

We yawned again, shaking our head. "No, no," I murmured. "We don't want to sleep while you all work."

"It's okay, like I said, we're not going anywhere."

We shot him back a grateful glance before leaning against the nearest tree. Sleep took us quickly, and we dreamed, not of the nightmare that claimed us so long, but of something different. Long buried memories moved at the very edge of our vision, shadows stalked but when we turned to look, they were gone.

Someone called our name, but it took a second before we realized it was us. We looked behind us, and stood a young girl with warm amber eyes and brown hair down to her thighs. She smiled when she saw us, and waved.

"What are you doing over here?" she asked.

Confusion spread through us as a grassy clearing appeared behind her, and we turned to see the clearing spreading for miles. "Um... We're not sure."

She looked confused. "We're? Who else is here?" She looked around. "It's just you and me, Ty."

 _Ty? Who is she? Okay, so we're gonna have to act as normal as possible. However strange this feels._ It hit us then that it _did_ feel really weird. Something was different...

Our heart skipped a beat as I realized that I was human again. I rapidly looked at myself. I had a dark tan with short brown hair, not pure black and furry anymore. _What happened?_

She smiled. "Come on, have you seen Kyra's pups?" She asked happily. "We get first pick!"

"Why?" I asked.

She looked at me as though I grew wings. "Because, we're turning ten, remember? We start hunting this year?"

 _So I'm older here._ It seemed very strange to think of myself as a single being again. In the distance, I heard a voice raised in a yell, sounding like it was calling for someone. The girl looked embarrassed.

"Oops," she murmured guiltily. "Mum's calling for us."

 _We're_ siblings? _Everything was so weird. But, this is just a dream,_ I reminded myself. _Not real or anything. But either way, why would I be dreaming of this._ Whatever I thought, I blankly followed the girl, wondering where we were going.

She broke into a run, and I followed, mesmerized by the fact that I was able to run faster than I was usually able to. I easily overtook her. It felt good and yet, and the same time, very strange, to feel the wind blowing through my hair. I briefly wondered if I had amber eyes like the girl's since apparently we're siblings.

I also wondered how I would learn their names. Wouldn't it seem a bit strange to walk right up to my mother and say, "Hi there, I'd really like to know the name of my whole family."? I knew I couldn't and I just decided to stay silent until I figured things out.

The girl led me through a small corn field, not seeing another person, before leading me to a small hollow in a hill. In front of the entrance, a tall, lean woman stood, brown hair just like the girl and I that rested on her shoulders, a few misplaced strands over her face and her chest. Her eyes were amber also, and she wore a ragged white sheet cut into roughly the shape of a dress that went over her legs, similar to how the girl and I were dressed.

"Finally!" the woman exclaimed. "What were you two doing so far from the shelter?"

I stared at the entrance to the hollow. It must inside, if it managed to house an adult and two growing children. It came as a relief to me, though, seeing shelter that I hadn't seen since I was very young. I realized with a start the woman was glaring at me. "Tyler?" She demanded.

The name brought back many memories, though they soared by in a flash so quick that when I tried to grasp them again they were gone, leaving my mind empty and confused. "Y-yes?" I stammered.

"What were you doing?" She repeated, her gaze becoming more annoyed than angry now.

"I don't remember," I muttered.

Her gaze snapped to the girl. "Erika? Just what were _you_ doing, since your brother," she shot another glare at me. "refuses to speak." The name Erika was familiar, and not faint like the rest of the memories. It was something recent, but what was it? I couldn't put my finger on it, my mind already crowding again with confusion and despair on being so confused.

I expected her to back down, though she continued to stare defiantly at her mother. "Tyler and I were out trying to find something for Kyra's pups to play with," she said, her amber eyes burning but her voice icily calm.

Her anger was beginning to subside, though her voice was still angry. "You shouldn't have gone that far. You know that you can't go farther than the field." She shook her head. "If you keep this up, I'll have to report you to the High Council," she murmured.

"Sorry," I muttered, having no clue what she was talking about.

"Sorry," Erika echoed.

She let out a loud sigh, before motioning towards the hilly place opposite of the field. "Go take you pick of Kyra's pups. They're been waiting forever now."

Erika dipped her head like a cat. "Yes, Mum," she muttered.

Once we were out of earshot, she turned to me, all her anger gone and replaced with excitement. "Hurry up, Ty!" She exclaimed, sprinting down a hill. "Race you to the den!" She cried happily before charging away. I followed, though purposely let her stay a few paces ahead so I knew where to go. Once I saw a den ahead, and in the distance was the crooning voice of many hounds inside, and I ran ahead of her towards it. Once I reached the opening I stopped and tried to catch my breath, panting like a dog. Her eyes shone. "Come on, let's go inside," she dropped her voice to a whisper as she started to tiptoe into it.

I followed, slightly cautious of what I might find inside. In a thin shaft of light from the ceiling, I saw a large ice hound curled up asleep. Beside her lay two tiny pups -one blue, one black-, their eyes wide as they gazed at the newcomers.

They let out a flurry of excited yelps and ran towards Erika, the black one tackling her to the ground while the blue one changed course and bowled me over, licking my face over and over until I thought I hadn't been so wet in my life.

"They're so cute!" She exclaimed, petting the puppy when it finally stopped licking her.

I had to agree. The pup that tackled me now looked up with huge, puppy eyes. "I think I know who this little guy likes more," I commented as I had to hold him back to keep him from covering my face with licks again.

"Well that's settled," Erika announced. "I'll bring in the High Council to tell them the choice."

I nodded, grateful that she wouldn't make me go on a wild goose chase to find the High Council. She ran away, leaving me in silence to think and rub the head of the small blue hound on my lap. Many moments passed until I finally heard footsteps outside. I looked behind me at the newcomers, expecting to see humans but a different sight greeted me.

Behind her, Erika herded two weird looking creatures. They were both gold and silver, and had almost diamond shaped faces, terrifying dark orange eyes with what looked like a large shell on their backs, covered in many bumps. It dwindled until reaching their feet, which I'm not even sure if they had any, because a golden robe hung above them.

The first one, slightly larger than the second, walked a few paces. "So, this is your choice?" It asked, sporting a masculine voice that was deep and smooth.

"Strange, I thought it'd be the other way around," said the other one, it's voice similar to the first.

"Well, this is what they chose," the first pointed out. It pointed at Erika. "What's it's name, now?"

She looked confused, as if she didn't know she'd have to chose it herself. "How about..." she looked even more thoughtful. "Something simple... maybe Pepper?"

The two looked at each other, something flashing in their eyes, then turned to me. "What's that one named?" It pointed at the little blue hound on my lap. Seeing how it breathed, it's breathing slow and heavy with sleep, something about it seemed familiar.

I smiled widely before announcing, "Popsicle."

 _ **A/N:**_ **I know. What the heck just happened? Well... it'll make more sense later. Anyway, another question is needed, and this one will be due Chapter 35. What does it mean that Webber is given this dream.**

 **Do you think that it's very important the ice hound we all know and love is with him in the Ancients? Also, if you're curious, the strange monster I attempted to describe was apparently what the Ancients are said to look like, according to the statues in the ruins. I'm also very curious on what you think about not only Webber having a sister, but** _ **Erika**_ **, and, if you noticed, they are the same age. Do you think it's cheesy and it sounds like I'm just pulling things out of a hat? Tell me what you think!**


	33. Chapter 33 Shades of the Future

_**Webber's POV**_

Erika led the newly named Pepper and Popsicle out of the cavern, both of them screwing their faces against the sun. It struck me that it was probably their first time outside. The little blue pup stood even closer to me, practically hugging my legs as it shook with fear.

I bent down and petted it. "It's okay, buddy," I murmured reassuringly to it. "You're fine."

He looked back up at me, his gaze trusting, and my mind was brought back to Popsicle from my time. He trusted me instantly too. Maybe they were the same spirit...

The thought terrified me, that maybe everyone are just souls reused over and over again. I shook it away, but the thought came back to me after Erika commented, "I hear the High Council have gotten the smartest people in the village together to create something called, "Artificial Intelligence" or something like that."

"Really?" I asked, becoming interested quickly. "What do they call it?"

She shrugged. "I just know they are. I think someone said it or something. I think it had an 'X' or an 'S' or something like that in it. Maybe a 'W'..."

My blood ran cold. Cautiously, I asked, "Was it _WX-78?_ "

She shook her finger at me. "You know, I think it was something like that. I'm pretty sure it had numbers in it also."

 _So,_ he's _here._ I thought, surprised. _Just great. I wonder if Wilson's here also._ But if he was, no one gave any clue. _Maybe he's one of them that's helping._

Erika bent down to pick up Pepper, who squealed in alarm. "Well, someone's feisty!" She announced, happily stroking it.

"So what do we do first?" I asked.

She shrugged again. "How do we train hunting hounds?"

"Watch how others do it?" I suggested.

She smiled at me. "What a great idea, Ty! I love the way you think!"

"Where would we go to watch them at work, though?" I pondered aloud.

"The hunting grounds of course, silly." She butted me, giggling. "I love the way you think, but sometimes you act fur-brained."

I nodded. "Sorry, I guess I forgot," I lied.

She led me up another hill, then down, then up again. At one point, we went over a larger hill, and when we got to the top, forests covered the ground. I didn't think twice about it as she led me into the forest, and I realized my footsteps sounded more firm.

 _The ground earlier must've been hollow._ I mused, then froze. Is this what our land looked like before we appeared in this world. As I tailed her, everything became more and more familiar until we broke out into a hot desert, though not nearly as hot as before. Only then did she turn to look at me.

"You take savanna and I take desert?" She whispered.

I silently nodded, happy that I knew where I was going. I soon broke into the savanna, the rabbit holes as abundant as they are in my time. In the distance, I heard the hunting bay of hounds, and I picked up Popsicle as I tiptoed into the grounds.

In the distance, streaking down a hill, was a large rabbit, followed closely by a red hound and a blue hound. Popsicle's eyes widened as he looked at the two, much bigger and stronger than even his mother. Only male pups became hunters, Erika had explains on the way here. The females never trained and were only meant to keep the packs alive.

If someone had a hound, and they had pups, if any children were about to turn ten or already ten got first dibs on them, the rest went to the owners. The two hounds were gaining on the rabbit, before the blue one stumbled and nearly fell, so the red one slowed to help it's packmate up, before charging after it again.

I realized with alarm that the rabbit was headed straight towards me and Popsicle, still terrified by the thought it still had the two hounds after it, and completely ignoring us. Popsicle struggled free from my grip and landed in front of it, lunging at it before it could react.

It fell in his jaws, and he looked up at me, blood beginning to stain his jaws red. The owner of the two hounds appeared on the crest and I waited for him to appear. He had slick, short black hair with amber eyes that looked impressed and proud as he looked at my hound's catch.

"Well, a chip off the old block, I'd say, ay, Tyler?" He said, his voice deep but ragged.

I smiled, noticing for the first time that his eyes reminded me of Erika's, and how he stood reminded me of myself. This must be our father. I could barely contain a smile. "It's his first time out," I told him.

He smiled back, patting my back until it stung. "Well, Imma take Rose and Shatter home, and I wanna see you back with that rabbit, young man. Your mother's gonna be proud."

I looked over the savanna and back towards the desert where Erika was. "I'll get Erika," I told him. "I'll meet you back?"

He gave a hearty laugh. "You're more like me every day. Okay, you do that."

I sprinted back towards the desert. I almost ran full force into Erika, who was just coming to find me. "Oh hey!" She greeted.

"Hey, we're supposed to go back," I told her.

"Okay, and when we do I gotta te-" she broke off as she noticed Popsicle still holding the rabbit firmly in his jaws. "Did he catch that?"

I nodded, nearly bursting with pride. "Yep!"

She butted me again, then set off towards home. "So how did you-" She broke off again. "Did you hear that?" She asked.

"Hear wha-" The last word was cut off as the ground fell away under me, and blackness folded around my vision. The land drove every last bit of air from my lungs.

I heard something shift next to me and rocks scattered across the floor. "Tyler, are you there?" She whispered.

"Yes," I croaked, though I felt like every bone of mine was broken and my arm felt like it was on fire.

She shifted again, pressing her shaking body against mine. "Tyler," she whimpered. "I'm scared."

Truthfully, despite the pain I was in, I wasn't scared at all, since I had been down here many times before, but I was only ten in this time, and eight in my own, so she had to think I was completely normal, so I lied. "Me too."

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

I stared at the dark land that had set after the sun did. Wilson was asleep, near the fire pit while Webber slept all day and into the night. I was the only one who didn't need to sleep, so I kept watch, making sure that no one would try to take advantage of the cool nights to attack.

I was bored though, having nothing to do but watching the dark abyss. Movement was seldom, but every single one set me on high alert. I saw another movement near me and readied my spear, staring at it as it moved through the darkness.

Fear began to fill me as I realized it wasn't moving away. I stuck out my chest as I glared defiantly at the shadow. "SHOW YOURSELF!" I demanded.

A growl rumbled and I stuck my spear in it's direction. I heard a whimper and I knew I hit my target. I saw it try to lunge at me but my spear punctured deep into it's throat, and it's whimper turned into a gurgling cry.

I stared in horror as it moved closer still, blood spilling freely from the open wound. The harsh metal tang of blood flooded my smell module. It limped into the light and my terror grew as I realized who it was.

It stumbled towards Webber's sleeping form and fell halfway there, dragging itself closer until they touched, and closed it's eyes, letting out more gurgling whimpers. _What have I done?_

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"What happened?" She asked, her voice a terrified whisper.

"We fell into a hole as it collapsed," I explained. She jumped as something pitterpattered across the cave floor, letting out a high pitched snarl of question I couldn't understand.

"What was that?" Her voice shook with fear.

Two spiders stepped into the light, one light tan with a spike of fur on it's head and one black, looking like a normal spider to me. The white one snarled something again, sounding more demanding and fierce. _The one time I want to be a spider again!_ I thought desperately.

The black one looked at the white one, and it nodded. They both lunged at us at the same time, the white one grabbing onto Erika's arm and the black one trying to defeat me. I heard Erika's scream cut off quickly and my own vision turned to black.

We found ourself on the ground, having not enough power to stand or even open our eyes. We felt something warm and furry against our face, and we petted it. "You're warm," I murmured. Then I realized that under me wasn't Pepper or Erika, but something else. We managed to open our eyes to see a fully grown ice hound lying on the ground next to us.

 _Ice hounds are never warm though..._

"Are you okay?" I whispered. He answered with a whimper. Something stuck to our face, warm and sticky, and we flinched away. We noticed that more of the liquid stuck to his fur, and we lifted our hand to see it covered in dark red blood.

We frantically looked around, noticing with an initial hint of relief as we saw WX sitting on guard, looking into the brightening forest. _At least we're back in our time,_ We thought. Then we realized, if WX was standing guard, who could get in and do this to him?

We took a deep sniff and instantly smelled blood, mostly on Popsicle but also...

Our blood ran cold in our veins, anger and terror battling inside of us. _WX-78._

We coughed, and he jumped, flipping around to look at me. "WEBBER! I-"

"Don't bother," I growled. "Why did you do this to Popsicle?"

He seemed scared at first, then replaced by a steady calmness. "I DIDN'T MEAN TO," he answered. "HE SNEAKED UP ON ME IN THE DARKNESS."

"We were beginning to trust you!" I protested. "I'll tell you one thing, and that's it," our voice became a snarl. "If he doesn't pull through, you can expect another fight, but this time," I added, shaking with grief and rage. "Only one of us are walking away from it."


	34. Chapter 34 Reign of Giants

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __Webber was acting ever stranger than usual. He completely gave WX the cold shoulder, not even looking his way when he was called. I knew very well that it was he that attacked Webber's precious pet, though, so I guess that's why.

But what confuses me more is the fact that he completely ignored me too. He was always avoiding eye contact and hadn't said a word since Popsicle was attacked. It had been three days, and Webber never stayed silent so long.

I looked around at what we had. We needed more wood... we were good on food, since almost all we ever did at night was collect food, so I guess that that's the next thing we need to get tonight. "Anyone going to help cut wood?" I asked.

As expected, WX shrugged, while Webber didn't show any interest in the fact I said anything. Inwardly, I was getting more angry by the second.

"Fine! You _both_ are coming with me!"

Once again, WX gave a simple "OKAY," while Webber ignored everyone.

Clearly annoyed also, WX shook him fiercely. "WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROSES!"

In a single, precise move, so quick I barely saw it, Webber flashed out his hand and pulled the robot's legs from under him, making him fall into the dust and acting like he had nothing to do with it. I found myself walking over and roughly grabbing his arm tightly and forcing him to stand and looked at me.

He acted like he was looking through me, and I barely kept myself from slapping him. I shoved him down again. "Got it?" I said in his ear, a hint of threat creeping into my voice.

"Fine," he spat. "Now leave us alone."

My anger began to spill over. "You have done _nothing_ for the past three days. Tell me what's going on or actually do something you useless lump!"

I felt WX's surprised gaze burn into my back, and even Webber seem shocked by my outburst, and I began to feel a bit guilty. Perhaps we expected too much of the young kid. I shook the thought away. Everyone had to do their own part, however hard it may seem.

His gaze turned from shocked to angry, and he flashed another snarl at me. "If you went through half of the stuff we had to go through you wouldn't think twice about confronting us," his growled, is voice so low that I could hardly hear it.

"HEY! I'VE SEEN SOME S-"

"Nobody cares, WX," we simultaneously said, pointing at him but not looking at him.

He sighed, leaned back against a tree, then protested, "BUT ARGUING IS _OUR_ JOB! NOT YOURS!" He was ignored.

"What happened then?" I demanded. "Inform me."

He looked away.

"Then do something useful."

He still refused to meet my gaze, but he at least snarled a "As you wish, O' Great One," sarcastically. "I shall follow everything you say without protest."

I rolled my eyes, wishing he would stop acting like a know-it-all. "At least he's coming," I muttered to myself. I looked around, realizing that WX had disappeared. _Idiot._ I thought. _Why go out during the summer?_

He returned just as the sun was falling beneath the trees carrying a backpack full of glow berries. "I THOUGHT WE MIGHT NEED A LANTERN OR TWO," he said. "I FOUND PLENTY, I THINK." He dumped them on the ground, forming a large pile.

"Great thinking," I praised, already getting to work forming gold and rocks into the shape. By the time dusk had fallen, I had the lanterns made, and we went out into the forest. To lighten the mood, every time we cut down a tree, however cut it down exclaimed, "Timber!"

Once, I heard a crash, but no one said anything. I looked around, confused, and I realized that everyone else were also as confused as I. "Not mine," I told them.

"Nor us."

"NOT ME."

"Then who-" I was cut off by another crash. An intense wave of heat flooded over me, even thought it was nighttime.

Webber's eyes widened. "It's here," he rasped, his voice tight with fear.

"What is? What's here?"

"It... it's here... oh... oh my Lord, run!" He started shaking violently, but holding his ground.

"Who is?"

"The Dragonfly," he croaked.

In the distance, another crash sounded, followed by a roar made by no living thing. In the air, a sharp tang made my throat and eyes sting. With it was crackling and the wave of heat came again. I recognized the smell instantly. "Wood smoke," I said, breathing in deeply. "My favorite smell ever."

Webber gave me a look full of disbelief. "The forest is on fire?" His statement sounded more like a question, then he repeated it louder, more certain. "The forest is on fire!" He prepared to run, but I grabbed his shoulder. He thrashed in my grip. "Let us go!" He cried.

"Not yet, we have to fight this thing," I reminded him.

"We can't fight something so horrible!" His voice started to come off as whiny. "Let us go, right now, Wilson!"

Claws flashed from in between the trees, and in pure terror, I saw the beast. It was large, not as big as the Moose or the Deerclops but still giant. It's claws were unnatural long, and it's whole body was covered in green scales. It's black eyes were about the size of half of it's body.

It ignored us at first, calmly setting a tree on fire a little ways from us and watching until it fell, turning to charcoal. It then happily ate it and any ashes of anything that was burnt. "IT LOOKS DOCILE," WX calmly pointed out. "ARE YOU SURE WE HAVE TO KILL IT?"

Webber, still shaking, nodded. "Y-Yes, we d-do."

Our lanterns provided enough light to see, but we didn't need them anymore. The trees around us were all ablaze. "Let's lead her into the desert," I shouted over the noise of the fire.

The other two nodded, too shocked to speak. "Get her attention," Webber demanded WX.

I realized that he was rightfully terrified, since he was in the center of a forest fire _and_ the injured Popsicle was still back at home. Looking up, I realized that WX was following orders for once, and he threw his spear at her face, doing nothing physical to her but enough to make her look over at him, her eyes blazing with fury and beginning to turn orange with bits of black on each scale, her orange eyes looked like fire themselves. It raised a mighty claw and I realized it was beginning to attack.

 _Ready for the fight of our lives..._


	35. Chapter 35 The Gentleman Scientist

_**A/N:**_ **I'm not going to do another question until Chapter 40 for two reasons (1) I don't really want an author's note at the end of this chapter (2) I wanna give more time for people to**

 **answer. Hope you like this chapter and don't murderize me if not. =) Also, there will be minimal dialog and very wordy.**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __Terror coursed through us as we gazed at the beast, not even reacting when it slashed at us, leaving a deep, bleeding wound down our arm. Visions of our nightmare kept reappearing, and we couldn't help think that we would end up killing both of our friends.

WX looked at us, shocked that we didn't even try to dodge. Finally snapping out of it, we let out an enraged battle cry and threw ourself into battle. We had no need for a spear anymore. Wilson found a way to make a sort of morning star, but he hoped to improve it later to make it glow by using a volt goat horn. Although it didn't light up yet, it was still a better weapon than the spear, though both of them preferred using the spear.

To us, it was much easier to move and we always like spiked weapons better than bladed or spear-point weapons. Although pain throbbed through our injured arm, adrenaline pumped through our battle-ready muscles and kept us going.

I swung the morning star at the beast, recoiling with how heavy it hit. It left many holes in it's scales. Fire raged around us, heat wavering already from the sun, and now from the smoldering branches. A steady wind blew the fire around, and the already hot weather urged it onward.

We were trying to lure it to the desert, we realized. We felt our heart clench when it hit Wilson with a hefty blow to the flank, but sighed, relieved, when he stood back up moments later. Looking a bit overwhelmed at three opponents at once, it gave another roar and slammed the ground, a large ring of fire spreading around it and hitting all three of us, searing our legs and knocking us over.

The desert was finally in view when it preformed this move again, knocking down the surrounding trees and burning passing tumbleweeds. We aimed another hefty blow to it's claws, hanging at it's side. Afterwards, we had to dodge another slash and leaped onto it's orange scales, barely clinging on to them, but managing it.

After steadying ourself, we climbed our way up it's back, using the morning star to attack it's wings first, then landing a hit on it's neck. It stumbled a bit after attacking it's wings, but instead of ceasing it's attacks, they became more violent and raged.

They were rather uneven and not very well aimed, but when one hit, it was heavy, bled a lot, and was long and deep. Something warm and sticks ran down our back, and when we dipped our hand in the substance, it became blood red. Our arm was bleeding real bad.

We saw it swipe at WX, and held our breath as the robot was thrown clear of the arena, flying into the forest and hitting a tree hard. He looked stunned for a second before shaking it off and sticking his spear deep into one of it's claws.

It roared angrily, and tried to shake the robot off. We once again aimed a few blows right into it's neck, just on the spine, and dug the spikes in as far as possible. It gave a pained cry and shook as off, landing us on a treetop. We didn't realize just how high up we were on it's back. Sliding down the bark, we landed next to Wilson, who was nimbly dodging each of it's attacks.

It ceased attacking for a moment, fluttering unsteadily away a few paces before falling a bit and letting out another ear-piercing cry. _What? This can't be right!_ We thought in surprise. _It can't be_ this _easy._

By the looks on the other's faces, they were thinking the same thing. It raised into the air a few feet again, and started flying off. "Hey!" Wilson exclaimed. "Come back here!"

Naturally, it didn't listen. It just kept fluttering away unsteadily. It stopped finally, then turned back to attack us again. It dawned on us that it was recovering when it was flying away. It's wingbeats were more strong again, even though it was losing a lot of blood, it didn't seem to faze the beast. It roared and pounded the ground thrice, each time knocking us farther away from it.

We crashed into a tree, feeling slightly dazed for a few moments. In a faraway-sounding yell, we heard Wilson's voice. "Webber! Watch out!" We were shoved roughly aside as the whole tree shivered and fell with a crash, falling inches away from WX-78's feet, and the look he wore was one of pure terror.

"WEBBER..." he choked before shaking his head to clear it. "COME ON!" He ran back through the trees towards the desert. We didn't realize just how far it pushed us. When we finally got back to it, it was already ready to attack again. It sliced at the air, just barely missing us.

It was so close that we even felt the fur on our face rippled by the wind it produced. Shaking with terror, we stood frozen for a few seconds. We stumbled a bit afterwards, leaning up against a tree to regain our balance. When we moved our hand away, though, the bark was stained red. In a flash, we realized that our dizziness was mostly because of the fact that our arm was bleeding horribly.

WX grabbed our other arm, jerking us away from the tree. "DON'T LET YOUR FIGHTING STRENGTH FAIL NOW," he muttered.

Without thinking, we found ourself grabbing a tumbleweed coming by and pulling it quickly apart and binding the grass inside to the wound on our arm, hoping it would help a bit to stop the bleeding. It was soaked within moments, and briefly we wondered just how long we could go with a bleeding wound like this.

Then it got even worse. In the distance, shrill squeaking was heard. Many tiny globs of lava with worm-like creatures inside rushed down the hill towards the injured Dragonfly. They released spurts of lava then swarmed us. We were surrounded on ever side by them, both us and WX.

Trying to focus on one at a time, but unable to focus on anything very well at the moment, we began to kill them, a few hits a piece, again and again, but it seemed that when one was killed, three more took it's place. The globs of lava were laying around randomly and still burning.

They became almost a minefield there were so many. Pure terror began to take over us completely as we realized that the Dragonfly was winning. With a flash of claws, we received another gash to the cheek, and we began to lose consciousness. Flashes red as blood blurred past our vision, and we felt WX trying to shake us awake. "COME ON! STAY AWAKE!"

We tried, and even tried to stand, but fell back once more and closed our eyes. The last thing we heard was a small noise WX made, the only thing showing how much of a state of panic he was in.

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __I stepped back from Webber's bloody form, and turned to face the Dragonfly again. Anger replaced my fear, and I rushed at it. All around me, any living thing was ablaze, and I just realized how much heat was around me.

With Wilson having disappeared, and Webber unable to stay awake, I was left alone to face the Dragonfly and it's allies myself. I heard a deafening crack as several burning trees were hit by it's claws and fell at once.

Instead of falling deeper into the forest, however, they fell towards it. I could hardly believe what I was seeing as it's deep orange scales disappeared under the shivering trunks, crushing many of the lava-worms. I walked towards it, and saw it had been crushed by them, and might be alive if it hadn't lost too much blood.

It was still however, and with a tiny moan of pain, it disappeared slowly and left a plethora of gems and stones on the ground. Among them was a small, cracked egg-looking one, but it took a few seconds to realize it was an egg, and I instantly felt guilty.

Behind me, I heard leaves rustle, and I expected to see more minions, but instead, it was Webber struggling to his feet. He gave a weak smile. "You did it," he croaked, his voice weak with loss of blood.

I was silent, just staring at the place where it disappeared, scanning it closely. There was no tooth. Wilson was missing and Webber was seriously injured, still in danger of dying from the wounds he received, and it was for nothing.

Webber echoed my thoughts. "That can't be right," he rasped. "And where's Wilson?"

I silently went into the forest, seeking out were the tree almost fell on Webber. Just beyond it, I saw him on the ground, silent, motionless. "Is... is... he..." Webber couldn't even finish his sentence, his words so reluctant and scared.

I stepped closely. It didn't look like the tree crushed him, I reflected, but like he was dealt a heavy blow to the chest. Three, deep, long claw marks were scored down his chest. Webber's gaze turned from scared to complete and utter panic. Shakily, he stepped towards his limp friend.

So much injuries, many fatal. Webber was still in danger from loss of blood, they didn't even get the tooth of the Dragonfly, which means they'd have to fight it again, but worst of all, Wilson was dead for nothing.


	36. Chapter 36 Aftermath

_**Webber's POV**_

 __It was hard going. Even though the death of the Dragonfly made much of the summer's heat disappear, we were still dizzy and weak from the battle, and there was still the fact that Wilson had payed with his life.

We expected to feel sorrow, even pure grief, but instead, all other emotions ebbed away as our mind became numb with the terrible realization that Wilson was dead and our vision came true. Eventually, we started to become so slow that WX even let us lean on his shoulder.

He was hardly recognizable now. He was dented and scratched in many places, even a few places metal had been torn away to reveal the many wires that made him run. Not only that, but he was nearly completely painted red by the Dragonfly's blood and even some of our own.

Camp was nearby and as soon as we stepped into the clearing we collapsed. Like always, Chester seemed oblivious, but Popsicle was waking from his uncomfortable sleep by the smell of blood.

He looked at both of us, then limped quickly over to us and starting licking us vigorously, trying to rouse us. We weakly raised our hand to pet the hound to reassure him, and he pressed closely up against us. To our relief he seemed cooler and a bit stronger than before.

We must have lost consciousness, because when we opened our eyes again it was nighttime. The fire was up and Popsicle was deep in sleep beside us. The strangest thing was that WX was gazing sympathetically at us. He smiled when he saw us wake. "FEEL BETTER?" he asked, no trace of his usual arrogance.

"A little," I murmured. Pain still throbbed through our body, though it wasn't piercing and the blood on our arm and cheek was dark and dried.

"YOU LOOK BETTER," he commented. He looked a little more like himself also, with much of the dents pounded out and the patches without metal covered. He was still painted red, however, and the look he gave us was completely foreign.

"Same with you," I told him. "Though you're still red."

He sighed. "I KNOW, BUT I CAN'T REALLY GET IT OFF..."

Struggling to stand, we limped over to him and fell beside the cold fire. "It's so strange," I murmured. "We teased him for being so boring and rambling on, and yet, it's so quiet without him."

"I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL."

We sat in silence for a few moments when something caught our eye. Beside the robot was a small black book. "Wilson's book?" I asked him. "How did you...?" 

"IT WAS STILL HERE," he answered without looking at us. "HE MUST'VE LEFT IT BEHIND."

We shook our head. "No, he never would've gone anywhere without it." Reaching over, we grabbed it and brought it closer to us. We opened it slightly to the first page. It was an information page we'd seen many times before. We turned the pages until we got to the back were the pages that had the people brought to the world.

The first one was Wilson's, and the breath caught in out throat. "WX... look at this..." I rasped. His picture was marked with a large, red "M", like many of the people in there.

His 'eyes' widened, and he turned to stare, gaping, at us. "BUT... THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE..."

"So does that mean the "M" stands for people that have... _failed_?"

"IT... IT HAS TO..."

We closed our eyes and snapped the book closed, taking a deep breath. "No... that's not right. It was probably there the whole time and we just didn't notice."

"YOU'D THINK ONE OF US WOULD NOTICE IF WILSON HAD AN "M" OVER HIM WHILE WE DON'T."

"So, now that this happened, what now? I mean, we don't have the tooth, and there's no way we're fighting a beast like that again."

WX reached into his pack and grabbed out a small black egg with cracks all over it, lava seeping out of it. "I'M NOT SURE, BUT IT DROPPED THIS. MAYBE IF WE COULD FIND A WAY TO HATCH IT, IT COULD HELP US NEXT TIME WE FIGHT IT."

We grabbed the egg from his grasp, looking it over. "It's awfully small. Do you think it could really help us?"

"IT'D HAVE GROWN BY THEN."

We stretched, beginning to get our strength back. "We're going to go to the ocean to clean off a bit when the sun comes back up," I murmured. "What are you going to do?"

"PROBABLY GETTING WOOD. AFTERALL, WE NEVER HAD THE CHANCE TO."

As always, the night was over far too quick and we were beginning to set off when WX grabbed our arm. We'd never seen him look so serious. "LOOK, YOU _HAVE_ TO COME BACK, YOU KNOW THAT, RIGHT?"

Baffled, we nodded.

He dropped his gaze. "DON'T FORGET IT, WE NEED EACH OTHER NOW MORE THAN EVER."

"We do."

He let go. "THEN GO, AND PLEASE, COME BACK."

With a small smile, we set off again. What got into him? Had he seen something... heard something...? No, he would've told us. Maybe he just is worried about being alone if something happened to us. After all, we were all he have left.

We knew a way down now that didn't involve chucking ourself off of the ledge. When we got the the edge, we let the ocean spray wash the blood off of our fur and wounds. We felt much better afterwards, and a bit cooler. For some reason, after slaying the Dragonfly, the weather changed drastically. It was no longer blistering hot but instead a steady heat like the summers I used to play in when I was a child.

It brought back memories, and for a moment we were thrown into a whirlpool of long-buried memories. We remembered my childhood well, but there was something else that we never noticed before, someone else.

Someone was there, playing in the summer's heat, splashing in puddles but... who...? In these memories we caught the smallest glimpse of brown hair and amber eyes. I had a sister. We knew this from the Ancients, but little remained of her memory.

What happened to her? We found ourself on the day our life changed and the memories slowed down, seeming much more like watching it happen again. We were playing together on a summer day like this when we were attacked by spiders.

We remembered this detail painfully well. The terror, the sorrow, the sureness that we were going to die. She must've felt this too, but the difference is, she didn't make it. She was killed by them. We realized that she was Erika in a moment's flash and realized that we were pretty much doomed to repeat the past.

At least twice we were twins, at least twice she didn't make it, and at least twice we were stuck like this. As quick as they flashed by they were gone, and we were once again sitting by the ocean and letting it's salty spray soak our fur.

The memories brought us back to thinking about Wilson, and once more terror engulfed us as we realized that he was no longer there. As quick as possible, we found ourself sprinting back to camp. When we got there, panting, WX was staring wide-eyed at us. He yanked our arm and looked at us deeply, with an unimaginable terror.

"WEBBER, WE HAVE TO TALK."


	37. Chapter 37 Reawakening of Nightmares

_**WX-78's POV**_

 __"WEBBER, WE NEED TO TALK," I said urgently.

He narrowed his eyes. "About what?"

I shook my head, my grip on Webber's arm slackened. "HAVE YOU BEEN HAVING... NIGHTMARES?"

He continued to stare at me for a few seconds, then nodded. "Yes... and you?"

I looked away. "YES, AND IT'S TIME TO FIGURE THEM OUT. TELL ME, WHAT EXACTLY DID YOU DREAM ABOUT?"

He was silent for a few more moments before slowly beginning to speak. He started at the dream about the Ancients, and I felt a start of surprise to find he had a sister. He went through his dreams up until the one he had when he was gone. I nodded thoughtfully.

"What about you?"

I closed my 'eyes', wondering how much to tell him. I finally decided to explain the details about anything that had to do with my creator, ending with my most recent dream. I was in a large palace decorated with gold and silver, crystals and diamonds studded many things.

Strange creatures stood over me excitedly, saying something a a foreign language I somehow understood but I failed to remember. They said something about how they "Beat the odds" and "Created artificial intelligence despite what they said". Then one rushed in and said something quickly and urgently, saying that two young children have fallen into a hole.

The one that ran in was a human, with short black hair and wild amber eyes. When urged to tell who they were, he said they were his twins. The dream had ended with them rushing out of the palace and cries full of grief.

Webber's eyes widened, and he looked away, looking completely baffled. "We know who they were," he said, looking back at me with his eyes burning with a fire I didn't see in them before.

 _How could Webber know?_ "WHO?" 

The fire faded, to be replaced with a cold sorrow. "Erika and Tyler," he murmured. "Our Ancient counterpart and my sister. We fell into a hole and were attacked by spiders... _again_." He spat the word _"again"_ with scorn.

"YOU FELL INTO A HOLE... AND WERE ATTACKED BY SPIDERS? DID THEY KILL YOU THAT TIME?"

He slowly shook his head. "We don't know," he rasped. He fell to the ground with a dull thump, crossing his legs. He stared at the fire, his eyes becoming almost hollow with defeat. "But what happened then doesn't matter. It's what's happening now. And right now, we're at the edge of our own demise."

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" I protested. "YOU COULDN'T POSSIBLE KNOW THAT!" 

"Open your eyes, you ignorant tin-can! Wilson's dead, we are very possibly on the edge to following him, and you couldn't _possibly_ survive without us!"

Before I could respond, Popsicle let out a faint whimper. Webber immediately forgot the argument and rushed over to him, gently stroking his fur. "It's okay, buddy," he whispered, his voice more gentle than I've ever heard it before. 

He widened his eyes to stare at Webber, then feebly licked his cheek. Webber wrapped his arms around the pup. I didn't say anything, but stood gaping at the scene in front of me. He let out another whimper and then shuddered and then lay still.

Webber didn't let go of him, just squeezed him harder. "No..." he croaked.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __Our heart was pounding as we held the hound pup. We knew very well by his stillness that not even pure hope would stop the inevitable. We expected tears, but nothing came, just a steady anger. After who-knows-how-long of holding the hound, we let his warm body drop to the ground.

Our anger was not directed at WX, however, but at ourself for not taking care of him well enough. We had many pets in the six or seven years before the incident, but none of them had died in our arms. Of course, my parents pulled the whole, "I'm sorry he ran away" act many times, but none of them had ever helped us survive, just gave us joy.

Popsicle had done both of those things, and now he was gone... _just like Wilson..._ "WEBBER..." WX murmured, his voice deep with sympathy.

"What?" I snapped, anger coming up as a fiery hot rage that began to burn towards WX instead.

He had come up behind us, and ran his cold, metallic hand down our back. "I'M SO SORRY..."

We flipped around, hitting his hand away. "Leave us alone!" I spat. We began to set off towards the forest, then stopped dead as we remembered Popsicle's limp body. We gently picked up the young hound and took him into the forest, leaving WX to stare into our back. He didn't follow us, and we took him towards the savanna.

We lay him softly down into the golden grass were we remember the tiny pup ripping away from our grasp to kill his very first rabbit back in the Ancients and buried him there, holding back tears. Closing our eyes and resting one hand on the freshly ground up mound of dirt, I whispered a few words for the last time to our beloved pet.

We thought that we took it much harder because of it happening so soon after Wilson's death, but we weren't sure if it was that or because we took care of the hound so carefully. Even though we couldn't afford to turn on each other, we were determined to get revenge on WX. It never occurred to us once that maybe we would end up making our vision come true, but that wasn't important at the time. All that mattered was doing this last deed for the young ice hound.

We started back, but stopped midway, then changed course to go to the hill full of cavern entrances. We were going to see if Erika had survived the flood in the spring. We knew the way down could be painful, but there were other ways. We found a strong tree limb and pushed it into one of the holes then slid down into it.

When our feet touched the cold cave floor, silence quickly claimed us. We stood in the fading light for many minutes. In the distance, though so faint we weren't sure, we thought we heard the terrified cry of a young girl and boy being attacked by a group of spiders, and we... _I_ seemed closer to Tyler at the moment then ourself or anyone else at the moment, especially a certain robot.


	38. Chapter 38 Pressing Shadows

_**?'s POV**_

The woman walked confidently down the pitch black hallway. The only light seen came from small torches scattered loosely throughout the large area. Despite the lack of light, she was able to see easily and knew every footstep before she even walked on it.

Behind her were two creatures tied on chains that she dragged down the hall. Their eyes were half-closed and both had been lashed after death. One was a man and the other was a small blue hound. She had a permanent grin on her once-beautiful face, and her once-warm eyes were now cold and haunted by the shadows.

She slipped into the final room, a well-lit space with many torches and a small phonograph playing a ragtime-style tune over and over again. A few feet away from it was a large black throne with many shadow spikes here and there. She dumped her two prisoners in front of her.

"I have them," she rasped.

There was a man in the throne, a tall man dressed in a dapper vest. Briefly, hope flared in his eyes before they became hard and cold like stone. "Where's the boy?" he demanded.

She looked down at her feet. "The boy survived," she muttered, fearful of his reaction. Anger sparked through the room, though not from the man, but the shadows gathered around to listen.

"Why?" Was all he said.

"He's strong, but without these two," she kicked the hound, who flinched away shivering. "He's hopeless."

"There's one left?" He queried.

"Yes."

"Then there is a chance for him to survive." His voice lowered. "He cannot survive."

The man struggled in his chains before turning to stare defiantly at the man. "Take us back!" He ordered.

There was a slight chuckle through the shadows around the room, but no one said anything. The man turned to the woman. "You manage to end the oldest and the most vicious, but you can't take out the boy?"

"He's clever, and fast," she admitted. "How am I supposed to destroy him?"

Around the man, darkness seemed to gather like an approaching storm cloud, and many images formed. The man on the chain flinched away from the pictures. A young kid walked through the forest, his gaze empty with horror and defeat, his strength faltering. "Does this look like someone who would be hard to destroy?" Although his words were quiet, they echoed unnaturally around the area.

She closed her eyes but didn't reply.

"You'll never take him out!" The chained man exclaimed.

"Really?" Said the man, before turning back to the woman. "Charlie, I thought I could expect more of you."

She hung her head. "You can," she murmured.

"You failed," he reminded her.

She fell silent once more.

His eyes flashed briefly with complete and utter terror, before turning back to his usual cool demeanor. "There must be four..." he whispered, and the shadows recoiled as though he had struck a blow to the invisible.

She looked up, surprised. "But- but what about _them_?"

" _Them_?" He asked, suddenly seeming a hundred years older than he really was. " _They_ have been losing their grip on me. It's time for a replacement. But there must be _four_ ," he insisted.

The ice hard coldness returned to his gaze. Charlie realized what happened, and backed out of the room, dragging the two chained prisoners behind her. "Yes, sir," she muttered, and in a matter of minutes, she disappeared but into the darkness.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

The cold cave floor was a relief to our summer-burnt feet. The coolness in the caves was nothing like the hot, arid weather that claimed the above world. There was no sign of Erika. "Erika!" I called.

There was no reply. Feeling slightly disappointed, we made our way back towards the surface. Our heart pounded at the thought of confronting WX again, but we had to get along. The journey home seemed a hundred years longer than the way there, but when we finally got back night was falling.

WX sat hunched wretchedly by the fire. When we got into the clearing we realized that he was angry, but not at us. "I'M SORRY," he muttered.

"We know," I whispered back, hardly believing our own words.

"IT'S HARD, ISN'T IT?" He asked gently, his voice wavering a bit.

"Yes."

His gaze grew cold. "BUT YOU DON'T KNOW, DO YOU?"

We narrowed our eyes. "Know what?"

He closed his 'eyes' and shook his head, not saying anything. Before even thinking, we sat by the robot and began to sit out the night. When the sun began to rise, however, a small beam shone directly on Wilson's book, and it flashed red.

We both flinched, then looked at it again. The book flipped open and it's pages were being flipped through like a wind was blowing them, but no wind blew on the hot, dry air. Darkness surrounded our vision, and the silhouette of a tall man appeared from it, no color visible except black.

"There must be four!" It announced, and it let out a huge blast of black energy that sent us flying back, ears ringing, senses beginning to fade out one by one into a spiraling blackness.

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

I had no idea how long I was out, but someone was shaking me awake. My sensors were still down, so I ignored them. It became harder to ignore, however, when they kept shaking me. I didn't open my 'eyes', so I just thrust my arm out in his direction and tried to wave him away.

"GET OFF ME, WEBBER," I muttered, allowing my sensors to fade out again. He shook me one more time before finally standing and I felt his glare boring into my side. I still didn't look at him, trying to race into the blackness that enfolded my vision.

"Do you plan on waking up today?" He asked, though it wasn't Webber talking to me.

I finally opened my 'eyes' to look at him, and I gasped at the sight that greeted me. Webber was lying, still unconscious, a few feet away from me, a small blue hound licking his face vigorously until Webber opened his eyes in wonder and gripped him hard, looking like he was barely holding back tears of joy.

I stared at the person shaking me awake, and I gaped in pure awe. "Wilson!?"


	39. Chapter 39 The Dark One

_**WX-78's POV**_

 __Webber wouldn't even dare move away from Popsicle, who was letting out a small crooning noise similar to that of a cat purring. Meanwhile, Wilson was pacing back and forth by the fire, holding his head and muttering to himself.

I watched them silently, though I was racking my mind as much as Wilson. Webber didn't seem to care, however, and didn't question how his precious pet rose from the dead. Much to my discomfort, both Popsicle and Wilson seemed off, almost like someone who got back from a bloody war.

"WHAT'S GOTTEN INTO YOU?" I snapped at Wilson. He flinched.

"I-I'm not sure," he admitted. He lowered his arms, looking closely at them. "This might be the cause," he commented, and I stepped forward to see what he was looking at. Up and down his arms were slash marks, though nothing more than scars, almost like he had been whipped.

It took a few moments to realize that Popsicle bore the same marks, along with the scar left on his neck and the various other marks of the wounds that took his life. "What happened to you two after... you know..." Webber asked, seeming slightly embarrassed.

"I don't remember," he murmured, still staring at his arms. "Something bad, but it's like something... at the edge of my memory. I mean... it's _there_..." his voice faded out in his confusion.

I glanced at Popsicle quickly, and he didn't even make a whimper. Even though he also had the whip marks, he didn't even seem put off by it. Although the wounds from the Dragonfly had been healing on Webber, the blast that brought Wilson and Popsicle back had completely healed them, even the scars were not visible.

I realized that even I was tan again, not red, and every scratch and dent was gone as if they had never been there. Had everything been reversed to before the battle? With a hint of fear, I rummaged through my pack and searched for the small egg.

I couldn't find it, and my movements became more urgent as I was beginning to fear that the summer restarted. Something hot touched my hand, and I flinched back many feet, staring wide-'eyed' at the pack. Everyone was looking at me, even little Popsicle had stopped mid-lick while cleaning his paw to stare at me with a hint of interest and even slighter still was hostility, as always.

I gave a nervous laugh, then shifted back a few more. Without another noise, I pointed at it with my mouth gaping. With a resigned sigh, Webber stomped over to the pack and dumped his hands into it, again flinching away and throwing his arms in the air, holding his hand for a few moments and sending something flying into the air.

It buzzed as it flew through the air and landing with a squeak, looking around with a blank expression. It was one of the lava worms that fought with the Dragonfly. Memories of the battle flashed through my mind and I tried to lunge in front of my friends.

"GET AWAY, YOU LITTLE RAT!" I spat.

"Wait, WX," Webber cooed. "He's holding something."

He started towards it but was shoved out of the way roughly by Wilson. I completely forgot that he was the oldest and thus, most experienced and didn't want either of us doing 'an adult's work'. A hint of annoyance shot through me as I thought about this. Just because _I_ was the youngest didn't mean _I_ was the weakest, but didn't say anything about it.

He went for the item it held in it's mouth. It willing let go of it and dropped it into Wilson's outstretched hand. He held it up and examined it, which Webber quickly lunged for and snatched straight from his hand, staring and it with wide eyes.

"The Dragonfly's tooth!" He choked out. "It was inside the egg!"

Wilson quickly grabbed it back. "We got the second piece!" He announced.

 _ **Wilson's POV  
**_

 __It felt so strange to be back, even though I was gone for only a few days. That wasn't what seemed so strange, however. There was something... that just seemed... dark. It was the same presence I felt in the room of shadows, which is all I remembered from the experience, but seemed inside of me.

It felt like it was pounding against my skull, and even though I attempted to seem happy on the outside, this new presence scared me. When Webber confirmed my guess -the Dragonfly's tooth- it seemed to become even more enraged, like a migraine that wouldn't go away.

I found myself being forced to sit down, trying to identify the source of this. Nothing came to mind, just this pounding, snarling, enraged beast in my mind. What did it want from me? Is it here because of me coming back? Did Popsicle have it too? 

So many questions I asked myself, but not a single one was answered. What was this thing, for one. What was with the whip marks, for two. I slowly shook my head, much to WX's and Webber's confusion.

"You okay, Wilson?" Webber asked, looking faintly awed that he was to speak to me again.

I blinked to clear it, and nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

"You sure?"

"Yes," I snapped, annoyed he was pressing the issue.

He flinched as though I struck a blow to him, then dropped his gaze. "Sorry," he mumbled.

I felt a bit guilty that I snapped at him, but didn't say sorry back or even 'it's okay' or 'no problem', which I probably would've before. What was happening to me? I felt WX's glare bore into my head. "HE JUST CARES," he spat.

I whipped around to return the glare. "Maybe you should take lessons," I retorted.

He seemed surprised and it took a second before I realized I did it again. "Arg, I mean," I looked around at both of them, then lowered my head. "Sorry," I muttered.

"Yeah, well don't do it again," Webber murmured, though I detected a hint of humor in the comment. "You smart-aleck." He looked back up at me, smiling.

"So..." I was lost for words. There was nothing to talk about for once. It seemed the two did fine on their own, and they hadn't even _tried_ to kill each other, as far as I know. Surprising at first, however, but I realized that the two seemed to be getting... closer?

No, not closer, that wasn't the word. Um... not... enemies? There's a word for it I know (A.K.A. The author is too tired to remember. P.S. Nobody said that, just for the record) but I couldn't think of it.

My mind was cluttered, filled with various words and symbols I didn't recognize. Slowly, I saw my vision turn dark around the edges, and I heard a dull roaring sound. I heard Webber's gasp and a "Watch out he's gonna-" And a thump as I fell to the ground again, the roaring blotting out every one of the rest of my senses until everything was nothing but blackness and roaring.


	40. Chapter 40 Moon Rock

_**A/N:**_ **Hey guys! Welcome back to... (drum roll) ANOTHER FILLER CHAPTER! YAY! Anyway, I decided to let you guys think of your own answer for the question given like, 7 or so chapters ago since no one answered or even tried to answer.**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __It was a pretty nice day that day. We all decided to explore a bit, farther than usual to get as familiar as possible with the land. Webber seemed extra giddy about it, and he begged to go to a certain part just beyond the hole-filled hill.

"We just want to see something," he explained when I asked.

Wilson sighed. "Fine, I guess we have nothing else to do."

After we hiked the hill, careful to avoid the caves and hollow ground, there was a bit more wooded plains then a bare rocky-land. "WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?"

Webber gave a half smile. "This is where the Ancients used to live before they fell," he murmured, his eyes glowing. "We are standing where dozens of Ancients have walked before."

"Cool."

"Cool?" He said disbelievingly. "It's amazing!"

If I could've, I would've rolled my eyes at him. "OOH! WE'RE STANDING IN THE FOOTPRINTS OF _DEAD PEOPLE!_ "

"Way to be a killjoy," he muttered.

I didn't reply, too busy examining a dark splotch of ground. "IS THAT A SHADOW OR A WET SPOT?" I asked.

They turned to look at it. "A shadow? Of what?"

In a matter of moments, we had been flung back many yards away, ears ringing or in my case, sound module malfunctioning. Painfully, I struggled to sit up to look at it. "WHAT HAPPENED?" I asked, confused.

It was a chunk of stone-like material with strips of white embedded deep into it. "What is it?" Webber asked Wilson.

He stood up and leaned against it, rubbing it all the way down and over the cracks. "I think it's some sort of moon rock."

"MOON ROCK!" I exclaimed, remembering something so strongly it was hard to push it back down. Of moon rock crushed and mixed with water... I took a chunk out of the rock with the sharp edge of my spear and holding it in my hand for many moments.

"What are you doing...?"

I smiled widely, holding up the small white rock. "IT'S ALMOST... A PIECE OF ME," I whispered.

"You're made of moon rock?" 

"WHAT? NO! IT'S... VERY COMMON WHERE I COME FROM."

"Ah," he snickered.

I chipped off a few more pieces and put them in my backpack, smiling for whatever reason. And yet, I felt connected to the moon rock for some reason.

Why- why- _why_ could I not look away from the rock? I shut my 'eyes' tightly, shaking my head. Wilson and Webber exchanged a glance, but didn't say anything. I tightened my grip and felt a bit crumble off the edges, then opened my 'eyes' again. "LETS GO."

Webber snickered. "We could _really_ annoy you right now."

"I WOULDN'T EXPECT ANYTHING ELSE OF YOU," I grumbled, trying to tear my mind from the rock in my hand.

He took a deep breath, but was stopped quickly by Wilson, who just shook his head. I watched Wilson for a few more moments. He was doing a great job of acting normal, but you'd think that if you came back from the dead you would be acting much stranger, thus normal behavior in itself was strange behavior.

He looked at me, his eyes flashing with... _hostility?_ I wondered. Maybe anger and confusion mixed together? Whatever it was, it kept me in my place for many moments before he swung his gaze back to where our base was. "We'd better get back."

"But the sun's not even-" Webber was shut up quickly by Wilson again.

"Come on."

I followed him, not knowing nor caring if Webber was following or not. Despite this thought, I found myself looking over my shoulder anyway to see him flagging a few paces behind. He looked up when I look at him and shot a sly smile, and I quickly turned away again.

Only when we got back did I realize I still held the white rock. "Maybe there's candy inside!" Webber joked. "Or a snake! Is that why your so interested? I could make a statue of you for _my little brother's_ birthday. Or... buildday, whatever you weird robots have."

"LITTLE BROTHER?" I questioned.

"Well... you _are_ younger than me," he pointed out, and I found myself wishing he would just shut up already.

 _"Then why don't you shut him up?"_ one of the voices pointed out.

The suggestion was horrible, I knew, but surprisingly enough, I didn't deny it instantly. I remembered the bit of affection I had towards the spider when he was crippled, but I knew all along it was just pity. I wondered for a moment my possibilities.

 _"Let's see. There is about a dozen ways to kill him without anyone knowing..."_

 _No! That's just... horrible..._

 _"And yet you still ponder the answer?_

I shivered. _Maybe it's just the moon rock getting to me..._

 _"Are you sure? You've_ always _wanted him gone."_

I shook my head, earning a very confused Wilson and Webber. "What's up now?" Wilson grumbled.

"N-NOTHING," I replied quickly.

"Uh-huh," Webber commented, not convinced.

I stole another glance at Wilson. Surely enough, he looked very strange. Wait... were his eyes always that color? Or am I imagining things? Webber traced my gaze and stared, confused at him also. He tipped his head to the side. "What's up, guys?"

But Webber was backing away, cautiously eyeing him. "Y-you don't look like yourself, Wilson," he said, his voice edged faintly with fear.

"What do you mean?"

Despite the innocent, confused words sounded genuine, his gaze was blank. This wasn't Wilson, or at least, how we knew him. I closed my 'eyes' tightly shut, shaking my head to clear it. When I opened them again, he was gone, and Webber had the same baffled expression I had.

"Should we... try to find him?" He asked shakily.

I managed to break a smile. " _WELL,_ I HAD A... _BETTER_ IDEA."

"You mean, a better idea than trying to find our friend who _probably really needs our help_ after _rising from the dead_?"

 _"This is your chance!"_ My creator's voice rang gleefully in my ear. " _Kill him!"_

I took a few steps towards him, and smiled darkly at him. "WE SHOULD SET UP SOMETHING EVIL FOR HIM FOR WHEN HE GETS BACK!"

He seemed to get excited now. "And what is this "evil thing"?" He questioned.

I took another few steps and explained what I was thinking. He grinned.

"AGREED?"

"Agreed," he breathed.

 **(Why does it take 5 hours to come up with a question?!) What are the consequences of Wilson & Popsicle coming back?**

 **Also! As always, I'd love reviews & opinions! As always, my favorite questions are "Who's your favorite character?" and "Do you think I capture their personalities well enough?" I wanna make sure you like what you read, and I wanna know what I can do to make **_**you**_ **love reading this as much as I love writing it! Farewell, my readers!**


	41. Chapter 41 The Deadly Deal

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __I don't really remember anything after I blacked out. I just remembered Webber and WX staring at me like I grew wings or something, then nothing. When I came to, however, I was no where near base. In fact, I barely knew where I was at first, but I recognized the strange wooden thing that I went to when we split up during the winter, with the red letters that looked just like the letter on the book.

I still had the book, I realized. My backpack was gone, but the book lay a few inches away from my hand, and I shuffled a few paces to grab it. It was still black, but something looked... odd... about it. It hit me. The symbol wasn't a symbol anymore, and with a start I realized that it was a large, red "M".

 _Maxwell... it_ was _him that brought us back! But... why? Why did he?_ I thought once again about what happened after the Dragonfly, but nothing! I mean, the only proof that we ever fought her was that we still had the lavae, that for some reason never attacked us or anything.

 _Maybe I'm wrong..._

 _"Oh, you're not wrong,"_ someone whispered what sounded like in my ear. I flinched, landing on my back on the ground again. No one was there. _"You think you can_ find _me?"_ he asked, a hint of amusement creeping into his voice. _"Adorable, but seriously now, I have a..._ proposition _for you,"_ he chuckled.

"And... what is this _proposition_?" I asked, a but fearfully.

 _"Oh, a very simple one indeed. All you need to do is bring that wretched spider to my machine."_

"Spider...? You mean Webber? Why do you want Webber?"

 _"Oh, nothing much. Nothing much at all. I need him, that's all."_

"Um... okay, I might be able to convince him to come here, if I knew how to get back, that is."

Much to my surprise, he burst out in a hearty laugh. _"You_ are _so funny!"_ He exclaimed, then his voice became much more sinister and dark. _"No, I mean... his... cold... dead... body..."_

I gasped. "Kill him! But why?"

 _"As I said, I need him. But not alive of course."_

"Why don't _you_ kill him, then?" I couldn't believe the words that came out of my own mouth. Did I just suggest that?

 _"Well, I can't really_ leave _my prison. But I can speak to you and that arrogant robot, though he's no use._ You _on the other hand, you owe me. I think it's a fair trade, don't you?"_

"Why can't you talk to him?"

 _"It's all fuzz in there. His thoughts are pretty shallow, and he's just plain unresponsive."_

 _"_ What do I get?"

 _"What do you mean? If you kill him?_ " He snorted. _"I'll free you and your little robot friend. You two are no use after the deal is done. Sound good?"_

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, something stirring deep inside me. "Okay. I'll do it."

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __There was a sudden burst of fear we had deep in our chest. What happened? We shook our head.

"WHAT'S WRONG?" WX asked us.

"W-we don't know. It's like someone..." we took a deep breath. "like someone just made a horrible mistake."

He smiled a bit. "I'D BET IT'S NOTHING. AFTERALL, THERE ARE A LOT OF WIERD VIBES HERE."

We shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so." We looked around, looking for whatever it was that made us feel that way. It felt like we were being watched. We shook the feeling away. WX was right. It was probably nothing.

We were just on the outskirts of Cave Hill, which is the best name we had for it because of all the cave entrances. "We still going in there?" I asked.

"YEP."

We grinned. "Ladies first," I invited.

"HAHA, VERY FUNNY," as soon as he said that, he pushed us down into one of the lowest falls at the very bottom of the hole.

It wasn't a very far fall at all, though we still ended up landing on our back, staring up at a very amused WX. We stood up and shook off all the dirt from the fall, then looked around hopefully. "Erika?" I called.

After finding out we were siblings, we finally understood the connection we felt when she saved our life back in our first visit to the ruins, and we were convinced she learned this too. We wanted _someone_ who understood us to talk to.

We heard WX land heavily behind us, and he put his hand on our shoulder. "LOOKING FOR YOUR GIRLFR- ER, I MEAN _SISTER?_ " He asked with a hint of a sneer.

"Yeah," I murmured absentmindedly. "Erika!"

"SHE PROBABLY BUSY," he reminded us. "COME ON, BEFORE WILSON GETS BACK!"

We nodded, making our way through the caves with a lantern WX brought from our base. "Where are we going?"

"JUST... HIDING," he said.

He barely told us anything about what he planned to do. All he said was we needed to prank him, but now, we didn't feel like doing it. In fact, now, we felt like running and hiding from... something, but what? The Bearger didn't wake us 'till Autumn, and the Dragonfly was slain, so what was there to run from?

"WEBBER WATCH OUT!"

"Huh?" There was a slicing sound and excruciating pain through our leg.

He grabbed our arm and yanked us closer to him. "SHOW YOURSELF!" He demanded.

There was a deep chuckling sound, followed by a voice, menacing and sinister. _"You have outlived your usefulness."_

"Webber! Snap out of it!" ordered a voice. We opened our eyes, shutting them painfully against the light.

"Wha...?

"What happened?" It was Wilson. "I'm not sure. You two were in the caves and you were just... out of it..."

We turned to WX, who was looking down at his feet, not meeting our gaze. "I KNOW WHAT HAPPENED," he murmured. "BUT NEITHER OF YOU SHOULD KNOW..."

Wilson's gaze hardened. "Was that you?"

"WHAT?" He snapped his gaze to look at us, blazing with fury. "YOU THINK _I_ WOULD DO THAT?"

"You do hate him," Wilson pointed out calmly.

"I _DON'T_ HATE HIM!" He spat, followed by an awkward silence. "AT LEAST HE DOESN'T LIE TO US!"

"Are you accusing me of _lying_?"

"THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I'M DOING! IT JUST SO HAPPENED YOU REAPPEARED JUST AS-"

"Just stop already!" I snapped at them. "We don't care! Just stop being so eager to blame each other?" We glared at Wilson. "What happened to you? You used to be Mr. Nicey Nice! What happened?"

"I don't know. Maybe... oh yeah! _I died!_ "

"DON'T YOU REMEMBER LAST TIME WE FOUGHT? YOU IDIOTS THINK IT'S SMART TO GO THROUGH THAT AGAIN?"

Shooting a last glare at both of us, Wilson took off towards a rarely explored place. "Let me cool down," he muttered, disappearing behind the heavily leafed trees turning gold and orange for fall.

"WEBBER, I KNOW WHO IT WAS," WX croaked.

"We don't care," I growled. "All that matters is that it doesn't happen again."

"BUT WEBBER! IT _WILL_ HAPPEN AGAIN! THEY'VE ALREADY MADE THE DEAL?"

"We don't care!" I repeated, turning away from him and back towards where the fire was.

"THEY WON'T STOP..." he whispered again, but we didn't care.

Even if WX saw who it was, it doesn't mean it will happen again...

 _Will it?_


	42. Chapter 42 Once A Friend

_**A/N:**_ **WOW! THE FIRST CHAPTER IN FOREVER THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE GIANTS AND IS NOT A FILLER CHAPTER! (Shaddup WX) =P**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"So... why did you want us to come with you?" I asked Wilson.

A smiled twitched on the corner of his lips. "Um, nothing! Nothing! It's just... um... something I wanted to show you. Yeah! That!"

We weren't convinced. There was _something_ up, but we couldn't put our finger on it. It occurred to us that maybe it was Wilson who attacked us in the caves, but we couldn't see why he would. There would be nothing to gain.

"We've never been this way," I pointed out.

"I know."

"Is that convenient?"

" _What_?"

"Just wondering," I murmured, watching a butterfly flutter by. "You've been acting strangely lately. And we realized you have _some_ business with us, and WX isn't here. Is it convenient for you?"

He didn't reply, just silently walking forwards. There was _something_ up with him, but what? "Here we are!" He announced. There was a checker-like pattern on the ground, and in the center was a strange wooden thing with red symbols on the edges.

Wilson gave a wicked grin as the letters glowed in our presence. "What now?" I asked.

"Now?" He pulled out his spear, recently sharpened to a point and another piece of flint tied to it on one end like a blade. "Now we escape."

"We escape?" We couldn't help a note of excitement creeping into our voice.

He chuckled. "No, by we, I mean WX and I. _You,_ on the other hand-" In a swift movement, he had his elbow on our chest, pinning us down halfway on the wooden thing and placing the serrated end of the spear on our throat. "are our ticket to getting out."

"How?" Was all I said. 'How?' was all that needed to be said.

"Simple, I struck a deal to get us out, and all he needs is you dead."

"D-dead?" I stuttered, our words feeling like they got stuck in our throat. "Who did you make this deal with? How do you know you can trust him?"

"There's only one way to find out. Say your farewells, Webber, because we are getting out." He dug the spear into our neck.

He let go, and we fell to the ground, holding out neck and coughing. "Wilson-" I choked out. "Why?"

"I think you know the answer," he replied darkly.

"I THINK YOU'D BETTER PUT THAT SPEAR DOWN, TRAITOR!" We never felt so relived when we heard WX's arrogant tone. He stepped out of the forest and onto the checkerboard flooring, shaking his head.

"WX!" Wilson exclaimed. "Finally! Come help me, won't you?"

"I'D NEVER HELP YOU," he snarled. He grabbed Wilson's arm, the one holding the spear, and twisted it slightly to the side. Then, in a quick move he put his hand against his back and forced his arm up, and Wilson gave a pained expression.

"Why are you doing this? Don't you want to escape?"

"OF COURSE I DO," he admitted. "BUT NOT THIS WAY. WEBBER IS... MY FRIEND..."

"Then you're as stupid as he said you were! He said he'd been trying to tell you to do this constantly, and you don't listen!"

"I MUST'VE LISTENED TO SOMETHING," he pointed out. "BECAUSE THIS IS ONE OF _YOUR_ MOVES, IF I RECALL, WILSON."

"Rubbish!" He spat. "Maxwell was right! You _are_ an ignorant automaton!"

WX dropped Wilson's arm, and stepped back a few paces. "YOU WORKED WITH MAXWELL?" He whispered. "WILSON... HOW- HOW COULD YOU? YOU KNOW WHAT HE DID TO US!"

"I _do_ know what he did! He saved my life!"

"DID YOU EVER STOP TO THINK WHAT KILLED YOU AND WHY? MAXWELL WAS THE ONE WHO SET FREE THESE GIANTS ANYWAY! IT WAS _HIS_ PAWN THAT MURDERED YOU! HE SENT US AFTER THEM TO _KILL_ US! HE DOESN'T THINK WE CAN DO IT! HE... WAS... LYING!"

"No! No he wasn't!"

"HOW DO YOU KNOW?"

"I could've proved it if you hadn't stopped me!"

"AND IF YOU WERE WRONG, AND WEBBER HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS."

"I wouldn't have been wr-"

" _WHAT IF YOU WERE WRONG!_ "

His eyes were blazing, though he didn't say anything else.

"ANSWER ME!"

We'd never heard WX so enraged. When Wilson spoke, he spoke very slowly. "If I was wrong... then that's one less of you to worry about."

There was silence. "WILSON..."

"No," I whispered. "This... isn't Wilson..."

"Yes it is," Wilson muttered darkly. "I've just came to my senses." He stood straight up again, looking WX straight in the 'eye', seeming to forget about us.

We could've ran and left WX to face him alone, but we couldn't do that. Instead, we kicked him in the back of the knees and he fell, glaring at both of us. WX grabbed his arm again, but this time, he cracked him in the elbow, bending it the wrong way with a painful _crack_.

He gasped with pain and held his arm. "HOLD HIM DOWN," WX spat.

With him is so much pain, Wilson barely put up a fight. "What now?"

WX rummaged through his pack, found a large, thick log, and pulled it out. "THIS." With a heavy swing, he smashed the back of his head with another crack and and fell completely.

"Did you just...?"

He stepped forward and put his fingers on Wilson's wrist. He sighed. "HE'S STILL GOT A PULSE, UNFORTUNATELY. SHOULD I HAVE HIT HARDER? I MEAN... HE'S TRYING TO KILL YOU AND ALL..."

"Leave him alive."

" _WHAT?_ "

"Think about it. He probably was Maxwell's control. I mean, at least he didn't succeed."

"BECAUSE I SHOWED UP. IF I DIDN'T, HE WOULD'VE SLIT YOUR NECK AND LET YOUR BLOOD SPILL ALL OVER THE WOODEN THING JUST TO WIN MAXWELL'S FAVOR."

"We still think it wasn't his fault."

He sighed. "IF YOU THINK SO. BUT... WHAT ABOUT THE FACT I PRETTY MUCH SNAPPED HIS ARM IN TWO AND CRACKED HIS HEAD..."

"That... he kinda deserved." With a forced smile, we hugged him. "Thanks a lot, WX. You really saved our hind end."

"YEAH, WELL," at that moment, if he could've, he probably would've been blushing, and that made hugging him completely worth it. He scratched the back of his head. "IT WAS NOTHING, REALLY."

"Though, what you said back there... did you really mean it?"

"MEAN WHAT?"

"About us, being your friend."

He looked at us for a few moments before giving a hint of a smile. "OF COURSE. WE'VE BEEN THROUGH A LOT TOGETHER, HAVEN'T WE?"

"Yeah... I guess so."

"AND... WELL... YOU _DID_ CALL ME YOUR LITTLE BROTHER."

"That was to annoy you," I snickered. "And it worked, did it not?"

"POINT PROVEN."

We smiled. "Come on, let's get home."

 _ **A/N:**_ **This was such a FAHN chapter to write. Actually, it really was. Well... tell me what you thought of this... thing that just happened. Until next time, my readers and people that put up with the words I put on a page. Farewell!**


	43. Chapter 43 The Unknown

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __It was all fuzz and darkness. _Wha... what happened?_

"OH, SPEAK OF THE DEVIL," I heard WX say as I started to struggle to my feet. My arm was killing me and my head felt like it had been ran over by a truck.

"What happened?" I croaked.

"Have a nice sleep?" was Webber's sneering reply.

"WELL, LET'S JUST SAY YOU KINDA SNAPPED."

"Snapped, how?"

Webber's smile dropped, and he looked up, showing a deep, red wound on his throat, crusted with dried blood. "Snapped that way."

"YOU TRIED TO MURDER WEBBER."

"It was terrifying."

"IT WAS GREAT!"

" _Great?_ "

"Okay! Before I have to break you two up _again_ , why does my head and arm hurt?"

"WX beat the living crud out of you, bud."

"WX? Beat me? Rubbish."

"Let's see... arm bone snapped in two, head cracked... yeah, you were beat."

"You _broke_ my _arm_?"

"YOU _TRIED_ TO _KILL WEBBER_?" He said sarcastically.

"I did?"

"DIDN'T I _JUST_ SAY THAT, LIKE, TWO SENTECES AGO? DO I NEED TO SAY IT A THIRD TIME?"

"Say what?"

"I GIVE UP!" He exclaimed.

I snickered, but regretted it instantly as pain shot through my ribs. " _Did you break my freaking ribs also?_ "

"NOT THAT I KNOW OF. I CAN IF YOU WANT TO," he offered.

"No thanks. So... what did I do?"

"You dragged us to the weird wooden thing. Then you said some really weird things, and tried to slit our throat. Then WX appeared and-"

"Yeah yeah, beat the living crud out of me, I get it. So... what kind of weird things?"

"Like, 'Maxwell was right, you are an ignorant automaton', and 'If I was wrong, then that'd be one less of you to worry about', stuff like that. I mean, you seemed pretty out of it. We _highly_ doubt you _really_ made any deals concerning Maxwell, right?"

"Well... um..."

He stared at me. " _Right_?" He demanded.

I looked away.

"You... you _did_ promise to kill us?"

"I..." I was lost for words. I didn't know what to say to a direct accusation such as that.

He closed his eyes. "We trusted you," he whimpered. "If it weren't for us, WX probably would've made sure you had no pulse by the time he got that log back in his pack, and you _promised_ the _one man_ who we shouldn't trust that you'd kill us." He shook his head. "Why?"

"I... I don't _know_!" I burst out. "I have no clue. I just thought-"

"That's the point! You didn't _think!_ Here we are, supposed to be working together to kill these five beasts, which may we remind you we have killed two of them and the third one is coming soon, and you decide, 'Hey, why not go kill Webber? You know, the _one_ link to the spider world!" He snarled. I never heard him so mad. "You know what? We're going out to find the Bearger ourself!"

"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!"

"Oh yes we can!"

" _Would you put more than five seconds of thought into it you ignorant spider?_ " I snapped, my vision becoming clouded by a red haze.

"WX, he's doing it again."

"STOP IT ALREADY!"

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

They were fighting like an old married couple! Bickering back and forth! But Webber was right, I reflected. Wilson _was_ doing it again. His barbed comments became more and more angry, his favorite word becoming 'ignorant', and his muscles seeming to twitch, ready to strike.

"WILSON WOULD YOU CALM DOWN ALREADY YOU'RE DOING IT AGAIN! DO I NEED TO BREAK YOUR OTHER ARM, TOO?"

"No," he grumbled.

"DO I NEED TO _BASH_ YOUR SKULL _IN_ THIS TIME?"

"No."

"THEN STOP BEING SO... LIKE THIS! YOU'RE WORSE THAN A TEENAGE GIRL FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!"

He closed his eyes, taking deep breaths. "Okay," he gulped, calming down a bit it seemed. "I'm better now."

"BARELY," I mumbled. "NOW, SAY YOUR SORRY."

" _Say I'm sorry_? You're joking right? WX, he's our ticket to getting out of here!"

"KILLING HIM IS OUR TICKET? WILSON THAT'S INSANE!'

"WX," I heard Webber whisper. "I-if you have to, you can, you know... kill us... so long as it's quick."

"NO!" I exclaimed, surprising myself with the strength of my answer. "WE'LL NEVER DO THAT! RIGHT WILSON?" I shot at him, who looked away.

He didn't say anything.

That proved it. "WHY... WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS, WILSON?"

"You wanted to escape," he pointed out, choosing his words carefully, it seemed. "This is the way."

"NO THIS ISN'T! THERE MUST IS A DIFFERENT WAY!"

"Don't you remember what you said yesterday? 'He was the one who sent the giants after us. He was lying!' Don't you remember that?" Webber pointed out.

I sighed. "WHY DON'T WE JUST... CALM DOWN, AND TAKE A NAP?" I suggested tentatively.

Wilson sighed, too. "Maybe your right. I really need to think."

I nodded. "NIGHTTIME IS FALLING, ANYWAY." The sun was sinking low in the sky.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Well... good night," Webber murmured, yawning.

A gave a hint of a smile and turned to watch Popsicle and the lavae Webber decided to call Pyrite until we came up with a proper name make weird noises at each other, probably communication. The ice hound made a snuffling noise, while the lava glob squabbled something back, then slunk away as Popsicle sniffed Webber with a whimper of concern and curled up near him. I silently watched them for a few moments before stocking the fire with grass since we hadn't collected wood in a while a and sat down to watch it.

It was quite beautiful, actually, the flames licking up higher and higher before falling down as another flame pushed it down in it's quest to be the highest. I smiled and picked up the moon rock we found a few days before. It glittered so beautifully.

I shook my head to clear it. I was thinking stupidity, wasn't I? I gripped it harder and felt it crumble in my hand. I grabbed a piece of flint and a small birchnut and carved out the inside of it and made it look much like a bowl. I dropped the rock into it and grinded it into a powder with the flint.

When it was a fine powder, I set it aside and decided to get some water from the ocean when the sun came up to mix it into a gel-like substance. Smiling, I turned to check on Wilson and Webber. My smile dropped and I stared, gaping, at the empty camping spot. Wilson was gone, and I realized with a sinking feeling that he took Webber and Pyrite with him.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"Wilson!" I gasped. "What are you doing?"

Pyrite was being dragged along by him for a light source, and we were right behind her. "Fulfilling my promise," he replied simply. He held his blade-spear in his weak arm, since his good arm had been snapped by WX. We knew his purpose, and why he went out at this time. WX wouldn't follow if he had no light source, and Pyrite was the only mobile light source we had as far as we remembered.

He dragged us to the wooden thing again, but this time, he didn't go for our neck. Instead, he rested the spear end on our chest, then did the same thing he did last time with pinning us against the wooden thing with his elbow. "Fine," I spat. "Just make it quick."

"Make it _quick_? Of course I won't! I have a better idea. You know another weak spot other than the throat?"

"N-no," I whimpered.

"I do..." He raised the halberd until it reached eye-level and sliced the blade point into our right eye and let go of us

The pain was unbearable, and we lay, gasping with pain and terror as they both surged through us at once. We barely kept tears back, but something warm and sticky ran down our cheek. We knew they weren't tears, but little droplets of crimson from our injured eye. He chuckled a bit.

"How does it feel? _Horrible_? Like you wish you could just _die_?"

We didn't say anything, just slunk to the ground and covering our injured eye from further injury.

He snorted impatiently. "Come on, I want to know something from you."

We swung our leg to hit the back of his knee again, and he stumbled again. As he tried to stay upright, we knew what we had to do, even though we didn't like biting people, we bit his heel as hard as we could. We knew it was a weak spot, and painful as heck if you do it right.

He fell, and we barely manage to struggle to our feet and move a few paces before falling again, watching blankly as the sun began to rise. We could've passed out if the pain wasn't so horrible. We heard WX say something in the distance, and the next thing we could understand was being in the camp with WX saying something else to us.

We shook our head and tried to bury our head with our arms. "No..." I murmured.

He closed his 'eyes' and the next thing we knew, a peculiar noise was coming out of his throat. It wasn't words, but sounded more like...

 _Humming_.

 _He's humming a song._

 _It's... it's a lullaby._

With a pained sigh, we let ourself be taken by the comforting noise and fall into a light sleep.


	44. Chapter 44 Outcast

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __"THE ISTY BITSY SPIDER, WENT UP THE WATER SPOUT. DOWN CAME THE RAIN AND WASHED THE SPIDER OUT. OUT CAME THE SUN AND DRIED UP ALL THE RAIN AND THE ITSY BITSY SPIDER WENT UP THE SPOUT AGAIN," I heard WX gently singing. That was the first indication something was up. The normally arrogant robot was speaking, _singing_ , so gently.

"WX?" I murmured, confused and once again, in pain, but this time in my heel.

"SHH," he whispered back. "I'VE FINALLY GOTTEN HIM TO SLEEP. HE'S HAD A ROUGH NIGHT, AND I DON'T NEED YOU WAKING THE POOR KID UP."

"What happened?"

"YOU," he replied simply. "YOU DID IT AGAIN?"

"I tried to..."

"YEAH."

I sighed heavily. "What did I do this time?"

"LET'S SEE, OTHER THAN THE FACT YOU SLICED HIS EYE AND MADE A BLEEDING WOUND ON HIS CHEST," he said absentmindedly, looking into a carved birchnut he held in his hand with a white powder in it. "NOTHING."

"I sliced his eye? Is he okay?"

He snorted. "I DON'T KNOW. WHY DON'T YOU CHECK, MR. SMARTY PANTS?"

Cautiously, I struggled to my feet but fell with an agonized gasp as the pain in my foot became worse. "Did you-"

"BEAT THE LIVING CRUD OUT OF YOU? NOT THIS TIME. WEBBER GOT TO YOU FIRST. SPEAKING OF WHICH, YOU REALLY DIDN'T EVEN WRAP YOUR HEAD OR ARM? ARE YOU STUPID? DO I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF _BOTH_ OF YOU?'

At the mention of my busted arm and cracked head, they began to hurt again, and I groaned. It seemed they were wrapped, probably by WX. I turned over instead to look at Webber, who was sprawled out on the ground just beyond WX. He did look miserable, with with chest bleeding openly and hands like they had been scraped over rough stone, along with the fact that, from what I saw, there were a few splinters in his side. I didn't see anything wrong with his eye.

Then, with a growl of pain, he turned on his side facing away from me, and I saw the many scrape marks and splinters I could only assume were from the wooden thing. "THAT'S NOT THE WORST PART. GET UP YOU LAZY-"

"Okay! I get it!" Despite the pain in my foot, I could only assume WX would make it that much worse if I didn't get up, and struggled to my feet. Glancing at WX, I expected to see anger or spite or even hatred, but much to my surprise there was a gentleness I've never seen in anyone before or since. _Does he really care that much?_

"COME OVER HERE," he demanded, though his tone was barely demanding at all.

I obeyed anyway, and saw what he was talking about. He had his good side facing me before, but I looked at his this way and saw that one eye- his right- was painfully swollen, and there was dried blood in various parts of his face.

I was wordless. I did that? "How's he doing?" I asked.

He sighed. "FEVER, PROBABLY INFECTED, NOT SURE THOUGH. I'M NOT SURE IF HE'LL HAVE HIS EYESIGHT WHEN HE WAKES, OR IF HE'LL EVER GET IT BACK AT ALL. IF HE DOES, HIS DEPTH PERCEPTION WILL BE THROWN OFF FOREVER."

"Why?"

He snorted. "AREN'T YOU BE THE SMART ONE? YOU NEED BOTH EYES TO HAVE DEPTH PERCEPTION, AND HE PROBABLY WILL ALWAYS BE BLIND IN THAT EYE. THANKS TO YOU."

"WX?" I heard Webber croak.

WX ripped his gaze away from me to look back at him. "HOW YOU FEELING?"

"Better," he murmured.

"HOW'S YOUR EYE?"

"Don't know," he muttered.

"CAN YOU SIT UP?"

He looked up at him with his good eye and blinked, before sitting up, gritting his teeth and sighing when he did. "It's looks all... weird..."

"WEIRD HOW?"

"It's all... one-sided," he replied, a hint of fear in his voice.

WX was silent for many moments. "WEBBER, HOW MANY FINGERS AM I HOLDING UP?" He held up three fingers.

"Three," he answered.

"COVER YOUR BAD EYE, NOW HOW MANY?" He held up two.

"Two," came his confident reply.

"NOW COVER YOUR GOOD EYE, NOW HOW MANY?" He held up all four of his fingers.

He covered his bad eye with his hand and stopped, silent for many moments. "O-one?" He guessed.

WX was silent once more. "WHAT EXACLTY _CAN_ YOU SEE?"

"With my eye covered?"

"YEAH."

"N-nothing. It's all black."

He closed his 'eyes' and sighed, then opened them again and shot a glare of pure hatred at me. "WILSON, WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN?"

"Wilson?" Webber exclaimed fearfully, before shifting towards WX and staring, terrified, at me with his good eye. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"Um... I live here?"

He didn't reply.

"Webber... you're not going to be able to see properly... for awhile..."

"How long?"

I sighed sadly. "You won't be able to at all."

"No... no, you're lying... _you're lying_!"

"HE'S NOT LYING, WEBBER. HE'S RIGHT." Webber looked at WX, his eyes wide.

He swung his head to stare at me again. "Y-you did this to us... didn't you? But... why?"

He didn't sound mad at all, just sad. "It... it wasn't me, I swear. Something came over me, but what it was, I have no clue."

"IT WAS MAXWELL!" WX spat.

"It couldn't have been you behind that mask. We _know_ you! You wouldn't do this to us!"

"You're right, kid. I wouldn't have done that to you if it was me. So the question is, why did I."

Webber closed his eyes for many moments. "We don't blame you," he whispered. "It wasn't you."

He struggled to his feet and forced a smile. I smiled back.

"You know," he started slyly. "we haven't eaten anything in _forever_!"

Although it seemed to be a joke, I realized that he was telling the truth, and he was bottling any emotions he had, and was masking his sadness with happiness. "Well, it'd be the first thing in forever that I haven't done wrong. Want me to hunt?"

"I DON'T KNOW... I DON'T REALLY TRUST YOU ALONE..."

"Oh yes, why don't you go hunting, and leave me alone with the kid I'm apparently trying to murder. Great idea!" I exclaimed sarcastically.

Webber's head drooped. "Yeah," he murmured. "What an idea."

I avoided his eye contact, and turned towards the desert. I should've been hungry too, but I wasn't. I had no appetite. When I did get to the desert, I struck down the animals without mercy, and this made me feel that much worse. Was I losing all of my humility?

When I got back, I had WX giving me the death glare again, and Webber had fastened a bit of silk and grass to make something similar to an eye patch to his head. "Welcome back," he murmured, eyeing the volt goats I had struck down. I purposely bagged three for each of us to have one.

"Here," I dumped the a goat in front of him, then WX. He stared at it cautiously.

"IS THIS ANOTHER TRICK?" He demanded.

I didn't know what he was talking about. "Um... no?" 

"WHY DID THAT SOUND LIKE A QUESTION?"

"Because I don't know why you asked?"

"WELL, I DON'T KNOW, IT'S NOT LIKE YOU'VE BEEN TRYING TO KILL WEBBER OR ANYTHING FOR THE PAST FOREVER."

"only the past three or so days," I objected.

"WHICH IS BAD ENOUGH, IS IT NOT? YOU'VE BEEN TRYING TO KILL HIM ANYWAY. AND YOU KNOW, IT DOESN'T TAKE A SCIENTIST TO KNOW THAT IT'D BE A _REALLY_ SMART IDEA TO POISON HIM WHEN HE'S HUNGRY."

"I'd never do that while I'm still conscious!"

"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW YOU'RE NOT UNDER CONTROL?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't know. Maybe, oh yeah! _I'm not trying to drag his sorry butt over to the wooden thing and slice his other eye out!_ "

"Shut up already!" Webber exclaimed. "Heesh! You two are like a bickering old married couple! Why have you all been so _talkative_ these past few days? That's all you ever do is _bicker_! Wilson, you're not trying to steal our job, are you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Last time we checked, we were supposed to be the one fighting with WX. Not only have you argued, you've _beat the living crud out of each other_! That's _our_ job!"

"CORRECTION: _I_ BEAT THE LIVING CRUD OUT OF _HIM_."

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, how about we focus on the job at hand? Maybe, just maybe, _it's fall already and we haven't even spoken about the Bearger once!_ "

"I've given up," I admitted. "If what WX said was true-"

"AND IT ALWAYS IS."

"-then there's no point in killing them."

"No! Stop thinking that! We _have_ to keep holding on to the belief that this will happen! This is our only hope!" 

"Stop hoping, Webber," I snapped. "Hope didn't save you from getting half-blind, hope hasn't gotten us out of here, and for crying out loud hope hasn't even put together a base or a friendship that would last through anything!" 

Webber was silent for a few moments, but when he did speak he sounded so small and vulnerable. "We're still friends, aren't we Wilson? Even though you have attacked us twice, we still count you as our friend, through thick and thin."

I was about to say something until something in that sentence clicked in me. "If you think so, Webber, we can be friends. But friendship never helped us either."

"JUST TO REMIND YOU, WASN'T IT FRIENDSHIP THAT SAVED WEBBER IN THE FIRST PLACE?"

"If friendship could've saved Webber, he wouldn't be half-blind right now," I pointed out wretchedly.

"We are _not_ half-blind!" He attempted to stomp away, but misjudged the distance between him and a tree and he walked right it. "Okay! Maybe we _are_ half-blind, but it could've been worse."

 _"Stop that right now!"_ I heard Maxwell scream. _"Make him stop that! He_ can't _be this naive! It couldn't have been worse! You pathetic scum! You can't even properly kill such a_ stupid _creature as he! I should_ never _have trusted you!_

Suddenly, I felt very light-headed, but my headache I had for the past few days disappeared, and I collapsed. The last thing I heard was WX's snide comment. "ABOUT TIME, TOO!"

 _ **A/N:**_ **Let's see, it appears to be another filler chapter, halfway. Somewhat important, not very. Anyway... so yeah. That... happened...**

 **Until... next... time... I... think...?**


	45. Chapter 45 The Indigestible

_**A/N:**_ **So if you haven't already guessed, Wilson's book is the Codex Umbra. If you are confused by what just happened, lemme explain myself a bit before the flames start coming in and maybe you can see why I thought about everything as it happened.**

 **After the death of Wilson and Popsicle, Maxwell was angry at Charlie and his monsters for not killing Webber.**

 **Because of this, Maxwell used the Codex Umbra to create shadow puppets to "restore them to their original form"**

 **Popsicle was not able to do anything about it, especially since Maxwell knew that no amount of control would convince him to harm Webber, so he used the shadow puppet inside Wilson to control him and make it seem like it was a smart idea to defeat.**

 **Whenever he hesitated, Maxwell would force the shadow puppet to do something, thus forming whenever he had no clue what he was doing, namely half-blinding Webber or cutting his throat.**

 **Truth be told, Maxwell had no part in any of it, but it was simply the Nightmare Throne using him as a pawn, similar to the First Flame using Gywn, Lord of Sunlight as a vessel in the game Dark Souls.**

 **Hope this cleared up some information for you, now, to the completely useless chapter of 45! Btw, no one tried to answer the question, but I'll answer it anyway since it's another obvious one, it made them both much more vulnerable to Maxwell & the Nightmare Throne.**

 **And then... let's see... oh! I haven't done any review comments for awhile, have I? (World's longest author's note...)**

 **Shadow Regrowth: Yeah, that was my goal for that chapter, though I'm not exactly 'proud' of it to say, I've had better chapters written**

 **Lucifen619(1): Glad you do! I'm quite happy with this story as a whole and I even redid the first chapter to (hopefully) fix it!**

 **Lucifen619(2): Was I that good at writing that chapter...? Well, I got more sad chapters up my sleeve, but it should be a bit happier for the time being, maybe even a funny one in a couple chapters.**

 **Login27: GLAD YOU LIKE IT! =P**

 **Guest: I think it would be more Webber to try to find his Achilles heel, personally.**

 **OKAY! TIME TO DO THE DARN CHAPTER! OMG I SPENT AN ENTIRE PAGE ON AN A/N! (392 words later...)**

 **_WX-78's POV_**

 ****"I don't think you should fight anymore," Wilson murmured uneasily to recovering Webber.

"Why not?" Webber growled stubbornly. "We're as strong as either of you two."

I knew that wasn't true, but I didn't say anything. _Poor kid... he's so determined..._

I still couldn't believe I was feeling _any_ empathy for the spider, but seeing him half-blind... it was almost unbearable. I saw him glance at me, fear battling sadness in his gaze, but no anger. "Tell us it isn't true," he demanded after we didn't reply.

I looked down at my feet. "I-I CAN'T..." I admitted. "LOOK, YOU CAN'T TELL WHAT'S CLOSE TO YOU AND WHAT'S FAR AWAY. HOW CAN YOU DO SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES YOU TO KNOW WHERE YOUR OPPONENT- OR PREY- IS?"

He didn't reply, just silently kept swinging his gaze to see us, made much more obvious since he could only see one side. "We're...useless now?" He whispered, his voice sounding small.

Wilson and I exchanged a glance. "Not completely..." he broke off, and took a deep breath before continuing. I have to admit, at that moment, I believed I could never forgive _or_ forget what he did to the kid. "There's probably something you could do."

Not wanting to lose face, I put it, "YEAH, LIKE NOTHING? WILSON, HE CAN'T DO _ANYTHING_."

Webber flinched as though I struck a blow to him and looked away. I felt a bit guilty, but I wasn't letting either of them know I was going against everything I was built to feel. They _weren't_ going to shut _me_ down!

Then I remembered Wilson waking up right after Webber was injured two weeks ago. He heard me talking to him. But at that moment, after I said that, I didn't care anymore. It's not like they knew what I was programmed with. Wilson might now about the paradox thing, but surely not Webber? He stood and fixed me with a steady gaze, his right eye still clouded and useless.

"So that's what you think, eh?" He mused. "That's probably the exact explanation for why you seemed to care so much while we were injured, are we right?"

"WELL, YOU CAN BE USEFUL AT TIMES, AND WILSON OBVIOUSLY WASN'T GOING TO HELP..."

"Since when did you care about if we died or not?" He pointed out calmly. "What happened to the WX who would just at the chance to see our dead body?"

I didn't reply. He got me there. Truth was, he died along with Wilson.

He smiled. "Got ya', didn't we? Now, back to the point," he glanced at Wilson. "Why can't we fight?"

"DIDN'T I _JUST_ TELL YOU?"

He rolled his eyes. "Can I get an answer, Wilson?"

"Sorry Webber, but he's right. You can't even tell what's far away and what's close up..."

"And who's fault is that?" He demanded. "Not ours."

"That doesn't mean anything. You still can't fight."

Eyes burning with determination, he turned around and shot the last few words over his shoulder. "Fine," he said simply. "We'll go find something to do." He walked off, leaving both of us very annoyed and confused.

I took a few steps to catch him and keep him from going, but Wilson grabbed my shoulder and shook his head. "Don't even try. He'll just become more stubborn just to be difficult."

I knew he was right again, and sighed. "CAN'T HE TELL THAT WE KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR HIM?"

"Apparently not. I mean, why should he listen to someone who's younger than him and someone who tried to kill him. I probably would've done the same thing." 

"BECAUSE YOU'RE AS STUBBORN," I muttered.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __ _How dare they say we can't fight!_ We thought angrily. _We can fight just as well as any of them._ We cautiously looked at a tree, then walked around it before finding it was many feet away. _Maybe they're right..._

 _No! They_ can't _be! They... they were just pulling a prank on us! Yeah! We can still fight._ But after we accidentally walked into a low-hanging branch, we couldn't help but think that over and over again. _We're useless_.

We almost didn't even notice that we were walking towards Cave Hill. Why had our legs brought us here? We purposely stayed far away from the cave entrances. We remembered in a flash that just beyond the hill was the old grounds the Ancients lived in. We somehow felt more connected to them than WX or Wilson.

With a hint of a smile, we walked over to the chunk of moon rock that had fallen that one day. We ran our fingers over the smooth boulder. _Why do they think we're useless?_

Then it dawned on us, and we stopped, eyes wide. _Because we are._ In the distance, there was the snapping of twigs, followed by heavy footsteps. We growled. "Don't even think about it, WX."

But in a second's notice we realized it wasn't WX's heavy tread, but much louder and deeper. _The Bearger. Nice. We'll get to prove just how strong we are._ Right now, we probably would've fought every tree-guard in the world to prove that we could still fight. It looked docile, snuffling at the ground as it searched for the trail of honey, it's nose twitching. "Hey! Over here you over-sized lump of fur!" I spat at it.

It looked at us, though not hostile, it's pure white eyes glimmering with interest. It sniffed the air for a few more moments before setting off towards a berry bush and calmly licking it clean in a matter of seconds. Annoyed, we moved in the way of another berry bush it had it's eye on. It gave a soft growl, but didn't attack, and instead turned to another bush, which we instantly moved in front of again. It growled again, deeper this time, then padded towards a group of carrots in the ground, beginning to dig at them and showing off it's sharp, muddy claws.

We walked towards it again and picked on of the carrots, and it looked up, it's gaze angry, and rose to it's two legs. It was massive when standing up, though possibly the smallest of all the giants we'd seen so far. "Yeah, that's it! Fight us!"

It swiped at us. We dodged to the side. It growled again. We turned, thinking. If we could lure it into the forest... it could get attacked by... what? We smiled. A tree guard can wake up. We ran towards the forest. It followed, making several trees fall in its wake.

It didn't occur to us that we couldn't run easily. It was heavily forested. We couldn't see very easily. We growled. Running into trees. Our specialty. An idea popped into our head. Since the incident, our other senses were stronger. If we could make them even stronger, maybe we could dodge them. The Bearger snarled. It swiped at us. We barely dodged it and closed our eyes. No longer was it a world, so bland compared to this, of sight. This felt free.

We felt the wind suddenly stop where we were running. We moved towards where the fresh air blew against our fur. We felt a tree whiz by. The Bearger let out a roar of frustration. We dared open our eyes to look behind us, and say with a hint of satisfaction it was crashing through the trees unlike us, who swerved around them like a fish swimming down a rocky stream. We saw the savanna ahead of us. Looming over it was a tall tree, which we knew very well.

It was the same tree guard that attacked us. We saw it open it's eyes drowsily and look around. They widened when it saw the beast behind us destroying the trees. _Please don't attack us, please don't attack us! Attack the Bearger! Attack the Bearger!_

The tree roared and stood up, stopping it in its track in a matter of seconds. Their faces were inches apart. The Bearger dropped onto all fours, but not gently as if it was going to walk off. It struck the ground with such force it sent us, even the tree guard was nearly toppled over by it. It raised one heavy arm and smashed the Bearger's back, right below the neck. We flinched. We knew very well the pain that it could inflict.

It roared with pain and frustration and forced it's head in between the tree's legs. It reared up and lifted it into the air, making it fall with an earsplitting crack of wood. It stood again and smashed it again, this time its paw and grabbing onto it's claws. It ripped them straight out of its paw, and both of them roared with pain as the thorn-sharp claws stabbed into the tree guard's arm.

We stood, silently watching the battle and panting with exhaustion. The Bearger snapped at the tree guard and gripped it with deadly jaws, making it topple over and running its massive claws over and over again down its chest. The tree guard finally retaliated and forced it up and off of it. Once the Bearger had fallen and was struggling to get up, it grabbed it again and threw it many yards away, stomped over to it, and did it again.

With an enraged roar, the Bearger lunged at it again and grabbed its face in it's jaws, gnawing on its trunk like a dog on a bone. The tree guard, in its desperation, pounded on its head. Its grip finally loosened and it tore away from it, pine needles mixed with blood showering on the forest floor. With a final lunge and _snap_ , the tree guard fell limp. Our blood ran cold. How could anything kill such a powerful beast as the tree guard?

The beast was horribly injured, however, and it fell back on all fours, softer, whimpering, and with its leg held awkwardly. Seeing the beast's injured form, we were filled with determination. Frowning with concentration, we lunged at it to deal the killing blow, stabbing our morning star deep into it's eye.

With a agonizing caterwaul, it fell and slowly disappeared into the ground, leaving behind several tufts of fur and half a dozen pieces of meat. We grabbed the fur tufts, excited of coming home with such a kill and the fact we learned such a useful skill for dodging trees. With a last sigh, we turned and started towards home, nearly skipping with giddiness.


	46. Chapter 46 The Power Keeper

**Several months later. . .**

 _ **?'s POV**_

 __Silent eyes watched as the man wandered through the forest, watching and looking. He seemed to always be thinking. He didn't seem fazed by it, though. He just stepped quietly around the leaves from the previous fall to make as little noise as possible.

It was morning, the dew glittering on the grass cheerfully. Soon, the man's pant legs were soaked, and he shivered. The air itself was still chilly from the winter that ended just days before, and snow still crusted the leafless branches, falling in freezing clumps and the man had to dodge them.

Although the only thing that he should be thinking was about how he got there, but he wasn't. In fact, he was thinking of completely different things. At his side he held a blue blade, almost matching his striking blue eyes. He surveyed the undergrowth for any sort of threat.

He walked around all day, looking curiously at the soon-to-be-growing leaf buds and wondering only for a few moments about his food options. Soon, dusk fell, followed closely by night, and he shivered again, the air dipping back to a freezing temperature. It was the night of the full moon, and the bright light lit his path. Ahead, in a part of the forest covered with shadows, he saw a light, faint, but promising. He walked calmly towards it and saw what was creating it.

It was a flower. Red and speckled playfully white white dots. Despite the pretty sight, an acrid odor rose from it. He covered his nose. He looked up at what it was growing against. It was a stone statue, as tall as he, with a bug-looking monster on it that had tiny wings.

"What kind of bug _is_ that?" He exclaimed. For some reason, however, he felt compelled to pick the strange glowing flower. Hesitantly, he bent down and grabbed it from the ground. He felt strange all of the sudden. Looking around, he saw something peel away from the shadows, and the bug-creature flew out of it, laying its several eyes on him trustingly.

"Zerweezerp!" It cried. "Zeeeerrrpp!"

He smiled and patted it, shifting the foul-smelling flower away from his face. He looked towards the opposite side of the clearing. There was a small instrument laying on the ground. It was a pan flute. He curiously walked over to it and picked it up.

In the corner of his eye, he saw movement, and his gaze snapped to where it came from. Was he being watched? He suddenly felt the presence of many eyes laying on him, and, with a final glance at the full moon, he raised his blade and stepped forward to confront it.

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"This is going to be _great!_ " Webber - now nine- exclaimed, bouncing back and forth.

"YOU'RE JUST EXCITED BECAUSE THE DEERCLOPS WAS A PUSHOVER, _"_ WX pointed out.

"That's no problem," I told him. "It's great, like he said! I mean, all we need to do is kill the Ancient Guardian..."

"WHICH WE ONLY KNOW WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE,"WX finished. This much was true. The rhino-like creature was gray and large, but that's all we knew. The page, although almost complete, didn't give any information about it.

"It's much closer than we were," I reminded him.

"We're gonna find him today! We can feel it!" Webber could barely keep his excitement under control. Ever since he came home with his tales about the Bearger, we were much quicker to trust him on his own, and his eye barely gave him any bother any more. In fact, if I didn't know about his injury, I wouldn't believe that he was blind in it. His new-found sensitivity to air flow proved useful in certain situations, and there wasn't even a scar to mark where my halberd had sliced him.

I still felt the pang of guilt for half-blinding him, but the kid never seemed to mind anymore. In fact, he had mentioned it only once since his battle with the Bearger, and that was to explain why the battle would be nearly impossible for him. "Well... we've been trying to find the Glommer since we came here... we haven't found it yet..."

"But we get closer every day!" He chirped.

I spotted the slightest hint of a smile WX gave him, and I couldn't help but smile, too. The two had certainly become much closer since his wound, though they _did_ regain just a bit of their previous hostility. "BUT WE NEVER FIND IT," WX sighed.

"You both make fair points, but we can't stop trying, WX. We _will_ find it eventually."

"WHAT'S THE POINT, ANYWAY? I MEAN, WE HAVE POPSICLE AND PYRITE," he waved towards where the two were having a stare-off. "AND CHESTER," the pumpkin-dog-thing was idle as always, sleepily laying on the ground. "WHY DO WE NEED MORE?"

Webber shrugged. "Why not?"

"Yeah, we might as well get all of them! The more the merrier!"

"TWO'S COMPANY, THREE'S A CROWD," he muttered. "IT'S CROWDED HERE ALREADY."

"Oh, lighten up!" I nudged him. "Come on, let's go!"

Despite WX's complaints, Webber and I managed to force him go with us. Well... more like Webber convinced him. "I think he's right! Of course we should keep trying until we find it!" Webber exclaimed.

"FINE," he spat. "BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN I'M GONNA TAKE CARE OF ANOTHER CREATURE AROUND HERE."

Once we got into the birchnut forest, however, I felt all of my previous confidence draining. Was that movement? Was it just me, are is it turning dark? I was about to say something when Webber stopped be abruptly. "Shh," he whispered. "We hear something!"

"What is it?" I murmured back.

He was silent for many moments. "Footsteps," he answered.

Motioning for them to stay silent, I shuffled through the undergrowth. It _was_ turning nighttime. Luckily, it was the full moon, and soon everything was washed in moonlight, just enough to see. "I think I see something!"

"What is it?" Webber demanded. Luckily, WX was smart enough to realize his robotic voice would be loud compared to our hushed voices in the near silent nighttime.

"It's..."

Suddenly, the undergrowth I was hidden behind was shoved away by someone. "Who are you?" He demanded. I scrambled up to my feet, eyeing him cautiously. His striking blue gaze nearly froze me in it's stare, and his brown hair nearly matched the brown leather tunic he wore. At his side was a shining blue blade.

"Who are _you?_ " I countered.

His gaze narrowed. "I asked first. And I would like to know who your friends are," he motioned towards were WX and Webber watched with wide eyes. Sighing, I grabbed their arms and thrust them into the open. Webber stepped forward.

"We're Webber!" He announced. "This robot here is WX-78, and that," he waved his hand towards me. "is Wilson."

He seemed confused for many moments, even more so by the completely baffled look WX had, then smiled a bit. "My name's Nicholas Swiftsword the V."


	47. Chapter 47 Slipping

_**Webber's POV**_

 __ _What... what was going on?_ At some point, our mind had slipped into unconsciousness. However badly we wanted to stay awake and bombard the newcomer, Nick, with questions, we now found ourself in this strange, bronze and silver plated room. The only thing we could see was a gold throne speckled with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and various other gemstones.

"Well, you just took your time, didn't you?" Came the voice from behind us. We flinched and flipped to confront them.

"Wh-who are you?"

It was a spider. Any normal spider to anyone else's eyes, but to our's... something was familiar. It seemed slightly disappointed. "What? You don't remember me?" It gave us a puppy look. "How sad. And we used to be so close, too! Well, maybe if I tell you my tale you'll recognize me."

Heart pounding, we desperately rubbed our eyes and blinked, trying to wake up. "Hey! Don't do that!" The spider smacked our hand. "You're slipping. I don't need you to miss out. Come on, let's chit-chat and catch up!"

We stayed still.

"Hey, pal. Look, your supposed to follow me," it made a rolling motion with it's legs. "You know, like, move your legs and follow me? Oh, you am I kidding? What are you, five?"

"Nine," I growled through gritted teeth.

"Already? Man, those years sure do go by, don't they? Well, never mind. Think of it like a game of follow-the-leader! Come on, follow me!"

Still didn't budge.

It sighed. "Fine. Have it your way. Lemme guess, you wanna sit in the throne? Is it the throne? Go ahead, I don't need such bling to express myself. So, you really don't recognize me?"

"Would we be standing here if we did?"

"No no, I think you mean," it circled us, eyeing us carefully before stepping forward. " _we_. As in, you and I. Come on, speak like a person for crying out loud. You have one body, don't you? Can't you think like that? Oh, who am I kidding? You still got cobwebs for brain. No matter, _I_ 'm gonna be doing the talking anyway."

" _What do you want_?" I demanded.

"Ooh, we got a temper, don't we? I guess I'll go into my tale of woe. You see, I was out with my best friend. We decided, hey? Not much food to go around. Guess we'd better go hunting? And it's always better with two. But do you know what we found instead of rabbits?"

" _What_?"

"Oh, come on. You're no fun! No good at guessing games? Well, no matter. You see, we found the two most _adorable_ little kids! Two just, perfectly normal, away-from-home little kids. Of course, we saw them as easy meat." It snorted. "Worst mistake ever. You see, my friend took on the little girl, I decided to take on the boy. Of course, the girl fell within seconds," it frowned. "But the boy _just wouldn't die!_ Would you believe that? I tried and tried, but he kept hanging on for dear life! 'Look bud,' I told him. 'You're sister's dead, you may as well join her.' But he still wouldn't back down! So I decided, 'If he doesn't die now, he'll die later, surely?'"

"And how did that work out?" I asked sarcastically.

"Not horrible at first. Swallowed the poor thing whole. But for the next several days, I just didn't have an appetite. 'Must've been that kid I had a few days ago', I told the others. But it kept getting worse. Up until the point I felt _my own mind slipping from my grasp_. All of the sudden, I was nothing but a memory in the _puny kid's head_!" It took several threatening steps forwards, raising it's front legs as if it was about to strike.

"The kid began to steal _everything_ from me! My sanity was first, then he claimed my mind completely. But it didn't stop there, did it? Tell me, when you found out your real name, did you still go _my name_? Was Tyler just not _good enough for you_? You steal my mind, my body, and my name? Even worse, _you made friends with that whiny scientist and that arrogant robot!_ Did you _ever_ begin to wonder how _I_ felt? Being cast away from everything I had? _Did you_?"

Taking on the challenge the spider in front of us-no, _me_ -, I stepped forwards until we were just inches apart. "And what do you plan on doing? Obviously, I've proven to been stronger and more in control than you. How do you plan on taking me back?"

It smirked. "That's the fun part."

We sat up quickly, heart pounding, breathing rapid. In front of us, Nick, Wilson, and WX were talking by the fire. We put our hand on our forehead, feeling a headache coming on, and felt it wet with sweat. "Whoa, easy there. What's wrong?" Wilson asked, looking at us with a hint of concern. Nick had a similar look, and WX's gaze looked near panic until he saw it was just a dream and relaxed.

"Nothing," I panted. "Bad dream, it's all."

" _See! Now I'm just a_ bad dream _! Does it ever stop!"_

"Care to talk about it?"

Wordlessly, we shook our head. We caught Nick's whispered, "What's wrong with him?". Obviously he didn't realize how powerful our hearing was. We felt something cool touch our hand and saw Popsicle trying to burrow his hand under it. Smiling slightly, we petted the ice hound and he curled up next to our legs.

"He has bad dreams sometimes," Wilson answered, not bothering to keep his voice at a whisper since he knew quite obviously that we could hear him. Nick nodded, his piercing blue eyes seeming lost in thought.

We caught sight of another worried glance from WX, who quickly looked away. We were curious on what his problem was, though didn't ask. "S-so. H-how did you find the Glommer?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"Well, you see, I was just kinda walking around and stuff, right? And there was this glowey... thing. And it was kinda dark, so obviously, you walk _towards_ the light, right? And as I drew closer, it was actually a _flower!_ Now, don't get me wrong, I mean, I've seen some shit, so this isn't exactly the weirdest thing I've seen, but to be completely honest, I though I was drunk. My friend Cloud and I – well, you may have heard of him, actually. Cloud Strife? Ring a bell?"

"Kinda," I answered.

"But anyway," Nick continued babbling. "so we kinda had 'the worm' last night, which was like the first time I've done that sorta thing, 'cause I'm not drunk often, but when I do... But anyway! So the flower, right? I pick it, and all of the sudden there's this... thing! Buzzing and flying around me and... it was kinda cute, so I decided to keep it... his name is Glomymash!"

Wilson snickered, and we held back a giggle. "Glomymash. Original," I commented.

"COMPLETELY," WX growled.

"So... you get drunk? I mean, is that normal or...?"

"Not that often, as I said, but, yeah, it's pretty normal."

"And 'the worm' is...?"

"Tequila, if you know what that is. Pretty hard stuff. I don't recommend it."

Several seconds of silence passed. "So... do you know any music?"

"WEBBER, NO ONE LIKES MUSIC."

 _"See! They use it as if it's_ your _name!"_

 _Oh, hush it back there,_ I thought-grumbled to the spider.

Nick grinned widely, but Wilson butted in before he could start the conversation. "Look, I'm glad you two are about to have a nice discussion, but the sun's rising, and we need to get stuff done."

We rolled our eyes. "Yes, _mum_ ," I growled, grabbing our morning star and looking towards the desert, even though we had some walk to get to it, as if it was right in front of our face. "You two comin'?"

"SURE," WX stretched (don't ask, we don't know either). "NEED SOME EXCUSE TO DO SOMETHING."

"Yeah. Look, not sure how much you know about hunting where you come from, but here, well, basically, take all that you know, put it in the back of your mind, and forget about it. Okay? You'll have to learn a whole new way of hunting."

"Sounds good," he mumbled.

"Need a weapon?" I asked him.

"That'd be nice," he admitted.

"WHAT ABOUT YOUR _SWORD_?" WX scoffed-pointed out.

He was ignored, and Nick was soon holding a newly made spear. He looked at it cautiously. "Um... what am I supposed to do with this? Do I... jab it or... poke it," he poked a tuft of grass with the wrong end. "Or... swing it...?"

"First of all," Wilson grabbed the spear again and turned it around to face the right direction.

"Ah, that makes sense. Because, I was wondering, how are you supposed to hurt someone with a flat end?"

"Second of all, you, _jab_ with it."

"OR SLASH," WX hissed under his breath, and we caught him glancing at our injured eye.

Finally, we set off, and well... Nick was very... interested. "So... what would happen if I swing it?"

"You'd probably give the victim a bump at best, concussion at worst."

"So... why can't I do that?"

"The pokey point is there to jab."

Finally, we found ourselves at the edge of the desert. "Wait, so, each area is it's own weather?"

"Yes."

He made a gesture with his hands. "'Logic'."

"And those are volt goats," I pointed out, pointing at the different goat things bounding around the field.

"Volt goats," Wilson sighed. "Great hunting. Good for food, fairly easy to hunt. There's just one small problem."

 _"Baaaaaa!"_

"Shut up, goats."

" _Naaaaa!"_

"I said, _shut up_."

" _Nyaaaa!"_

"I swear, if one of you 'baaa' one more time..."

 _"Bnaaaaa!"_

"Alright, you asked for it." He sprinted towards it.

"This is gonna be a long day," I murmured, feeling the voice comment.

 _"Oh, yes. Having fun yet?"_

 _ **A/N:**_ **Sorry I haven't updated in forever! My excuse is very simple. You see, Nick is my brother's OC. (Don't worry, the story will still mainly focus around our three pals) I had a lot of work to do with figuring out how he acts and stuff. And, I'm so sorry for those of you who hate profanity, but if a character uses the word, hey, why should I change someone's personality who's not even mine? So yeah, feel free to check out his profile, The Power Keeper, and see the endangered Nick in his natural habitat. Personally, I think many of you guys will like Nick. Also, whole new story for Webber/Tyler! Yay! Something to do! ;)**


	48. Chapter 48 Return to the Ruins

_**WX-78's POV**_

 __I glanced warily at Webber. He had been a bit jumpy lately... well, more jumpy than usual. It wasn't insanity catching up to him- I remembered well what insanity looked like on him- but something else. A wariness that refused to leave him, perhaps, making him look over his shoulder constantly. I wish he would just confide in any of us, but he refused to. Well, I'd prefer him not to confide in Nick.

There was something about the blue-eyed warrior that made him seem... unreal, perhaps? What are the odds of some person with a sword to pop out of nowhere? Then again, every time I so much as thought of him, I couldn't forget seeing those mesmerizing blue eyes a long time ago during a small bout of insanity. But then again, if he was trustworthy, why did every line of my code scream against being within several feet near him?

I was on the brink of forcing the kid to talk when he stood suddenly, his gaze unfocused, muttering something under his breath before turning to stare me straight in the 'eye'. "Well, we're thinking about going on a walk or something. Anyone wanna join?" He seemed like he was trying to be cheerful, but he failed horribly.

With a prick of interest, I got to my feet. "GUESS I COULD DO WITH A RABBIT OR TWO," I commented.

With a glance at Wilson and Nick, who were talking to each other quietly, he nodded and motioned for me to follow him. Once we were out of sight, however, he turned on me, his gaze almost hollow with defeat. "Look, we know why you came-"

"CAN'T REALLY JUDGE ME, CAN YOU?" 

"-and we're glad you did."

Slightly shocked, I stepped back. "WHY ARE YOU GLAD?"

He gave a slightly nervous shrug. "We-" he cut himself off, glancing away for a second before looking back with an intense glow in his eyes. "no, _I_ need someone to talk to." Before I knew it, he had burst out into a speech. "Okay, remember a while back ago when you said that Webber surely wasn't my actual name? Well, it isn't." He glanced away. "It's Tyler. And Webber is the name of _him_ ," he spat, glaring at himself.

"Y-YOU'RE SPEAKING IN-"

"Singular? Yes, I know. Because for once, _he_ isn't sticking his nose into every conversation. Right now, I see myself as a single being. But look, he confronted me the other day about stealing everything he had and now he said he's going to get back what was his. Which _might_ mean that he's going to end up tearing away from my mind completely." He gave a nervous chuckle. "That might seem not horrible until you realize that means I will literally have the worst split personality ever imaginable."

"I'M CURIOUS," I murmured.

He studied me closely. "About what?"

"WELL," I shuffled my feet. "WHY ARE YOU TELLING ME? WHY NOT SOMEONE _OLDER_ THAN YOU," I couldn't keep the sneering tone out of my voice, and it took a few moments to realize how I said it.

He narrowed his eyes. "Oh yes, they always say tell the adults. Tell me, do you think Wilson would listen? Or would he just search for his precious _scientific answer_? As for Nick," he snorted. "I'm not so sure about him. Look, WX, I know we've been enemies pretty much since we met, but-"

"YOU MEAN... _NOT_ DESPISE YOU?" _Heh, how ironic._

"Well... I mean, I guess," he looked away. "Like," he smiled slightly. "maybe, _friends_?"

I barely held back a snort. "FRIEND-ENEMIES? MAYBE. FRIENDS? MUCH TOO FAR."

He gave an exasperated sigh. "I guess that means that's the best I'll get from you?"

I nodded.

"Guess that'll have to do. Now, don't tell _anyone_ that I told you any of this, got it?"

"BUT WHY? WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT ABOUT YOUR NAME?"

"My name's not the problem," he growled. "I don't want them to know that I'm practically fighting myself."

"BECAUSE THEY'LL THINK YOU'RE UNSTABLE?"

"Because they'll _know_ I'm unstable. Look, can you just make this one promise, for me?"

I sighed. "FINE," I spat.

He looked relieved. "Thanks, I know I could count on you!" With a smile, he raced off into the undergrowth away from camp. _I hate making promises so much._

 _ **Wilson's POV  
**_

 __"You really think it's time to go into the ruins?" Asked a very confused Webber.

"Don't _you_ think so? I mean, what are we waiting for?" I asked.

"THE ANCIENT GUARDIAN ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE," WX pointed out calmly. "SHOULDN'T WE PREPARE MORE?"

"Like what?" 

"LIKE... MORE LANTERN FUEL?" His gaze drifted towards Nick, who was busy poking the fire with his spear. "AND ANOTHER LANTERN IN GENERAL?"

"Can't we worry about that later?" Webber's voice cracked, and he coughed to clear it. Before trying again. "Can't we worry about that later?"

"Probably. After all, don't we need light flowers to make lanterns?"

WX shrugged. "WHATEVER YOU THINK."

"So, what kind of stuff do we find down there?" Nick asked, finally joining in the conversation.

"Worms," Webber growled. "Lots and lots of worms."

"HE PROBABLY IS AFRAID OF WORMS AFTER THAT FIRST INCIDENT," WX joked.

"And you aren't?"

"Not just worms," I interrupted before they could freak out Nick. "But bunnymen."

"Wait, literal bunny men?"

"Mhhm."

He was quiet for a second before shaking his head. "I've been some weird places and seen plenty of things, but man, are you sure I'm not still drunk?"

"Pretty sure."

"SO, WE'RE SPELUNKING?"

"Is it agreed?"

With a hesitant nod from Webber and a much more enthusiastic one from Nick, I nodded.

"Great! To the Ruins!"

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __It was dark. Very dark. The only light given off was the limited vicinity of the lantern and the faint light coming from the dusk on the surface. And this wasn't even the Ruins yet. We shivered. Despite being mostly spring now, the air underground was still so bitterly cold from lack of sunlight that we felt dizzy after only a few minutes. To make it worse, it was dead silent other than the echoing sound of footsteps and the distant drip of water.

 _Must be from that river we fell into,_ I mused, remembering with a shudder that winter we fell into the ocean chasing a rabbit. We were mostly cluttered around Wilson's lantern, saving our fuel for the rest of the journey ahead. Well, except for Nick. He was a few feet away, gazing in wonder at the surroundings, enveloped in a faint blue light from his sword which almost seemed to be pulsing. _Reacting with the nightmare fuel perhaps...?_

"Webber, where did you say that old Ruins sinkhole was?" Wilson turned to us.

We opened our mouth to speak but was interrupted by WX. "LIKE I WOULDN'T KNOW? DIDN'T WE _BOTH_ GO DOWN THERE?"

He sighed. "Yes, but I thought Webber would be able to remember it better."

"HOW? BECAUSE OF ERIKA?" He snorted. "OH PLEASE. I WAS BUILT TO REMEMBER JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING. FROM THE MOMENT I WAS BUILT TO JUST NOW, I REMEMBER EVERYTHING."

"Good for you. Nobody cares," I growled. "Besides," we pointed ahead. "Isn't that it?"

Sure enough, a pile of golden rubble lay in a small darkening spotlight from above. Giving us a nod of approval, Wilson approached it. "Well spotted. After all-"

"Let us guess, you didn't think we could see that well anymore ever since the incident."

"Incident?" Nick asked, making us jump. "What happened?"

Flinching and almost seeming to shrink back, Wilson began with, "A while back ago, I-"

"We scratched our eye on a branch awhile back ago, s'all," I interrupted him, not wanting him to have to repeat the story. _It must be so painful to talk about it._

 _"It's painful to have it happen to you."_

Bristling, we found ourself growling aloud, "Won't you just _stop it_ _already,_ Webber?"

There was a quizzical look from WX, but luckily, no one else seemed to hear us. Nick and Wilson had gone a bit ahead, nearly engulfing us entirely in darkness, and we rushed ahead, heart pounding. "Ready?" Wilson asked.

"As we'll ever be."

"Nick?"

"Eh, I don't have a choice, do I?"

"Okay," Wilson took a deep breath, glancing back into the hole. Then he jumped down, and Nick followed him. With a sneering glance from WX, he followed and, with a last glance at the night sky, we leaped down after them.

It was even darker in the Ruins than the caves, and twice as cold. Glancing around in the light of Wilson's lantern, we nearly felt our heart stop as a single, shocked voice cut the silence. "Webber!?"

Wide-eyed, we stared around until we saw what we were looking for. A glimpse of white fur and red, nearly pinkish eyes. "Erika!?"


	49. Chapter 49 The Ancient Guardian

_**Webber's POV**_

"Erika!?" I gasped in disbelief.

The dangling depths dweller gave a huge smile before launching herself at us. "Webber! It _is_ you!"

We giggled for many moments before seeing the most confused look ever painted on Wilson and Nick's faces, while WX seemed to be keeping back a facepalm. Brushing ourself off and turning to look at them, we motioned towards her. "Oh, right. Um, this is Erika."

"WEBBER'S CRUSH," WX sneered.

"No!" I spat, glaring daggers at him. Turning back towards Erika, we smiled largely. "We were afraid that you drowned in the flood a while back ago!"

"The flood?" she shook her head, which, being a normal sized spider, was pretty much her entire body. "No, we got high enough to escape that."

"Wait," I told her, looking around. "Where's you father? Surely he'd be watching this sinkhole instead of..." I faded out, seeing the look of pure grief painted on her face. "Erika? What's wrong?"

"Father's dead," she choked out. "He was killed by the flood."

"B-but, you said-"

"We, as in, my group."

"Wait, so your-"

"The leader now? Yes. But... it's bittersweet without father..." her gaze became far away.

"So..." glancing back at WX, Wilson, and Nick to make sure they didn't understand what we were saying, we broke into a whisper. "Did you have the same dream...? About us being..."

"Siblings?" She looked away. "Oh yes. No one believed me, but... is it true?" She looked up at us, her gaze serious. "Are you my brother? Are you... Tyler?"

Slowly, we got to our knees and looked at her directly in the eyes. "Yes... I'm Tyler."

She nodded slowly, then straightened herself. "Anyway, so what are you doing down here? And..." he gaze drifted towards where the other three stood by uncertainly under the entrance. "you brought your friends."

"Oh! Right!" Quickly, we got back up to our feet and motioned towards them. "You already know WX, right?"

"Too well," she growled.

"And Wilson, and this is Nick." Changing our dialect, we turned to them. "Guys, she could probably help us!" Turning back to Erika, we asked, "We're here to fight the Ancient Guardian."

She gasped. "You can't! Y-you'll die!"

"We have to," I murmured grimly. "but... do you think you could help us?"

"I wouldn't dream of _not_ helping you, Ty," she grinned, turning deeper into the Ruins, and gave a few cries of summoning to the darkness. In the distance, we heard spider voices.

"Wait, was that call saying, 'We have a problem', or 'Who stole my unicorn?'" Asked a very confused cave spider.

"What do you think," snarled an elderly spitter. "Now hush and listen to our queen."

Slowly, she began speaking. Though we saw only a few shapes, we spotted dozens, if not hundreds or thousands of glowing eyes perched on ledges, on the ceiling, or gathered around. _Seriously... do they follow her around waiting to be summoned or something?_

"So wait, we're risking our lives for _humans_?" A voice from above demanded.

Slowly, but not short of spite, Erika turned to glare at the pair of eyes it came from behind. "Did you not listen? They're after the _Ancient Guardian_. Tell me, how many of us have tried to kill that beast and failed? Think of it this way. If you participate in this attack," her eyes gleamed. "You'll be remembered for centuries upon centuries, whether you gave your life or not."

There were a few interested murmurs, and luckily, no one else argued. "Wow, that was simple," I muttered.

"Oh, well, they got used to blindly following orders when my dad was still alive," she replied dismissively. "You'd be surprised. Some of them would do _anything_ to be remembered more than surface spiders." Her gaze became far away. "Many of them think they're arrogant."

"They don't think we're arrogant, do they?" I asked fearfully.

"Heck if I know," she snorted. "It's hard to know with half these idiots."

We were slightly surprised that she would talk about her own group like that. She obviously saw our confused expression for she waved her legs at us. "Oh, don't listen to me. I don't get along with most of them. They seem to think talking to me makes them higher on the social scale."

Blinking slowly, we turned back to tell our 'acquaintances' to follow us, but WX was gone. "Where did...?"

"WX go?" Wilson guessed.

"Find more allies," Nick answered, his eyes gleaming. "You're spider army is great and all, but... let's just say I've stomped several spiders in my lifetime and the Ancient Guardian probably has, too."

We shrunk away from him involuntary, shivering. He laughed.

"Don't worry. I don't have very many human-sized spiders in my body count."

"That's comforting," I grumbled.

"Isn't it?" He smirked.

After shooting a tiny glare at him, we turned back to Erika and her army of spiders. "Should we wait 'till WX gets back?"

"NO NEED," he called, several heavy footsteps following him. He looked pleased with himself, and it took a few moments to figure out that there were seven rock lobsters behind him, following in his footsteps and looking only mildly curious at the hundreds of spiders that lined the Ruins. We stepped back.

"R-rock lobsters?" I tried to keep the fearful note out of our voice but failed horribly.

"Are you sure this isn't a trap?" Erika whispered, eyeing him carefully.

He shrugged. "THEY SHOULDN'T HURT ANYONE."

"You tamed them?" Wilson seemed impressed, while Nick nodded thoughtfully.

"I WOULDN'T SAY TAMED."

Taking a deep breath and hoping for the best, we turned to Erika. "Okay. Take us to the Ancient Guardian."

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

"What do you mean she can't take us there?" I asked, slightly annoyed at Webber.

"Exactly that. It's in a labyrinth. She knows where that is, but she doesn't know how to get through it." His eyes flashed. "When we get there, stay close to us. We know the way..." his voice turned slowly into the spider language, leaving WX, Nick and I very confused. Nick made a cuckoo sign and WX elbowed him.

Slowly, the land changed. It wasn't flat any longer, but instead dotted with stalagmites. Ahead, walls like a fortress met the ceiling. Webber growled something to Erika, who nodded seriously. "That's the labyrinth," he whispered. "Follow us. And _stick_ to us," he shot a glance at WX, who gave an innocent smile.

Glancing at him, I realized that he had closed his eyes and the legs sprouting from his cheeks were twitching furiously. He must be feeling the air current. Confused, I looked around. Was there any air current to follow? By scent maybe? Then I realized that he didn't seem to be thinking at all. I stifled a gasp. He knew this path by heart. Right... left... right... right... forward... left... he was doing it from muscle memory. Finally, he stopped completely, spreading his arms to halt everyone behind him.

"Be quiet," he whispered. "It's here."

"Here? Where?"

Opening his eyes again, he pointed towards the right. It was a large clearing, and I felt my heart soar. Until I saw what was sleeping soundly in the middle of it. It was smaller than the giants, but still bigger than any of us, a bit bigger than a rock lobster in height. But the one thing that kept me still and silent was the shining horn, sharper than any blade, with Nick's sword shining faintly off of it in a blue sheen.

We were about to fight the Ancient Guardian, and I didn't have a good feeling about it.

 ** _EDIT:_ I am in need for a few single-time beta readers for this next chapter. So, if anyone is willing to help and not afraid of spoilers, please Msg me and I will gladly get back to you**


	50. Chapter 50 The Soulless Automaton Part 1

_**Webber's POV**_

 __Although we, by far, outnumbered the Ancient Guardian before, it had successfully picked off just about all of them. Never before had our injured eye given us so much trouble. Without the wind drafts, we couldn't use them to find our way around, making everything so much more difficult. After doing a quick check-up on Nick, Wilson, and WX, we were relieved to see that they were still alive and fighting. Wilson had suffered a minor blow to the arm and Nick's knees were scraped, possibly from falling.

We looked over ourself. Because of our half-blindness, we had suffered the most blows. Scratches were laced up and down our whole body from hitting stalagmites and we felt bruised all over. It took us several moments to recover. The Ancient Guardian had not a single deep wound on it. It had plenty of bite marks and slices from the spiders and jagged marks from the rock lobsters, but almost all of them ceased to bleed.

This was not good. This was _**not**_ good. We were fighting back panic when the Ancient Guardian's pupil-less gaze landed on us and it charged at full speed, forcing us to scramble out of the way as fast as possible and it barely saved itself from crashing against the wall. We leaned up against the wall, panting. How long could we go like this? Erika was at our side in an instant, her soft white fur coated in old cobwebs and many blows done to her, but her pinkish red eyes were still alight with the heat of battle.

"Come on, Tyler," she urged, calling us by how she first knew us. "I know your in there somewhere. The Tyler _I_ knew wouldn't give up this early."

"We... can't," I gasped.

"Of course you can! That's Webber talking! I want to hear my brother!"

Suddenly filled with determination, we could almost feel the brother she knew surge up inside us, and we turned to face the beast. It's eyes gleamed for a moment before charging us again, crashing roughly against a stalagmite and chipping the top of it's horn off. It roared with pain and fury, locking eyes with Nick, then rearing again to attempt to catch us on it's horn.

"Not this time!" I exclaimed in victory as it missed us by a foot.

Growling, it bucked suddenly and hit us, sending us crashing into one... two... three rocks before hitting the wall with a painful _crack_ and an unbearable pain to our ribs. Slowly, our vision began to blur. _Maybe we could just rest for a few moments..._

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __I heard a cry of pain as the Ancient Guardian landed a hard blow on Webber, sending him skidding away. I felt an intense fury bubble up inside me, but barely managed to keep it under control. I caught sight of Erika's horrified face before it got in between her and I and prepared to charge at Wilson. Seeing my chance, I couldn't believe it as my own legs carried me over to where Webber lay unconscious. "COME ON, WEBBER. YOU CAN'T FAIL NOW," I whispered, thinking back to when he was first injured after our encounter with the tree guard.

Unaware of his surroundings and a small pool of blood forming around him, I was afraid for several moments that he was going to die of blood loss. Shaking my head in refusal, I shook him vigorously. " WEBBER! GET UP THIS INSTANT!" I exclaimed.

He stirred and blinked up at me. "WX?" He croaked, struggling to his feet.

I nodded curtly, glad to see he was fine, and looked back to the Ancient Guardian. It was scraping in vain at a ledge on which Wilson and Nick were on, who were glaring down at it and daring it to try and get them. "WX," he said more forcefully. "Is everyone okay...?"

"YES. YOU'VE ONLY BEEN OUT A FEW MOMENTS."

"And... Erika?"

"SHE'S FINE TOO."

He sighed. "What a relief. Go, we-" he cut himself off, shaking his head slowly. "No, _I_ got this."

"GOT IT." I ran back to where I was standing before Webber was hit and grabbed my spear tightly, charging at the Ancient Guardian and managing to stick it deeply into it's back. It roared with pain and shook me off, sending error messages for a few seconds before I forced myself back to my feet. Not even fighting the dragonfly was _this_ bad. I quickly glanced at Nick and Wilson again. Both still on their feet. Good.

Next, I turned to check on Webber. He was panting again, leaning up against a column of rock. Then I saw the Ancient Guardian's gaze drift towards him. And he charged. Time seemed to slow down, every footsteps of the rhino lasting a hundred years, every drip of blood on stone echoing for an eternity. Webber and I had fought so many times, it wasn't even funny. I knew every weak spot, every pressure point.

Although I could quite possible injure him further, I knew he could be saved.

I knew _I_ could save him.

Closing my 'eyes', I seemed to feel such a strong pierce of emotion, it nearly brought me to my knees. I sprung over to the spider child and shoved him roughly out of the way, making him stumble to the ground several feet away. _I-I'm so sorry, Webber._ I thought wretchedly. _I'm not going to escape with you guys._

I could've ran. I could've let the Ancient Guardian swivel to hit Webber, easily ending him at it's angle. It had it's eyes on me, though, and that I wasn't going to lose. Not feeling any fear, regret, or anything else for that matter except for a steady calmness, I raised my chin and stared it straight in the eyes. "COME AND GET ME YOU ANCIENT GOOD-FOR-NOTHING RHINO!" I snarled at it.

It hit me like a storm, and I felt myself being impaled on it's horn of ivory. Despite this, however, I felt no pain. Not even as I was flung into the air and hit the ground with a loud _crash_. I couldn't help a tiny smile. _I did something right for once..._

 _ **Webber's POV**_

We felt ourself being shoved off to the side roughly by cold hands. Surprised and slightly annoyed, we looked up just in time to see the Ancient Guardian's pupil-less gaze traced on us, running his horn deep into WX's torso. Before we knew what was happening, he was flung several feet in the air, smashing against the cave roof which caused nuts and bolts to shower from him, and he landed several feet away, a large, circular hole ripped out from his stomach. His gaze was fixed and remote. Glancing at the Guardian, who was being kept busy by Nick, we ran over to his side and lifted his head slightly. "WX! WX! Can you hear us?"

"WEBBER?" He croaked, sparks flying off of him. "I'M G-GLAD YOU'RE OKAY."

"WX, you're hurt!"

"THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT. A-ARE YOU HURT?"

"N-no b-but,"

"THEN I'VE DONE WHAT I SET OUT TO DO. YOU SEE, EVERYONE HAS SOMETHING THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO DO IN THIS WORLD. AND M-MY PURPOSE... WAS TO SAVE YOU. Y-YOU- GHAAA!" He let out another shower of sparks from his torn out torso. "YOU ARE MEANT TO DO GREAT THINGS, WEBBER. I-I KNOW YOU ARE."

We were at a loss for words. "Why?" I choked out. "Why did you do this?"

"I HAD NO CHOICE." He gave another weak smile. "YOU KNOW, W-WE FOUGHT BEFORE. AND I'M SORRY. I REGRET IT. I REGRET ALL OF IT." He gave a shuddering sigh. "BUT I DON'T REGRET THIS DECISION. AND YOU KNOW... IF I COULD GO BACK IN TIME, I WOULDN'T CHANGE A THING."

Slowly, we closed our eyes. _Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry,_ no longer did I feel Webber's influence. It was just Tyler now. _I'm strong. He's strong. H-He'll be fine. I_ won't _cry._ But despite my silent urging, I did the one thing I never did before.

Not when I was crippled, not when we split up and I nearly froze to death, not when I nearly died fighting the Dragonfly, or when Wilson died, or when Popsicle died, not when I was half-blinded and beaten, not when I was bitten, scratched, smacked, bruised, or slashed. I cried. When the first tears fell, I just couldn't stop.

WX just looked at me, blinking slowly then reaching out a shaking hand to wipe the tears away from my face. "DON'T CRY, WEBBER," he murmured. "YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN SO STRONG."

"I-I don't want you to leave me," I sobbed.

He closed his eyes, and I wasn't sure if it was because he was running out of energy from the hole in his stomach or if it was willingly. But quietly, so quietly, only my sharp hearing could pick it up, I heard his faint words. "THE ITSY BITSY SPIDER WENT UP THE WATER SPOUT. DOWN CAME THE RAIN AND WASHED THE SPIDER OUT. OUT CAME THE SUN AND DRIED UP ALL THE RAIN AND THE ITSY BITSY SPIDER WENT UP THE SPOUT AGAIN," he sang. Something about the melody reminded me of when I was injured after my fight with Wilson, and I relaxed slightly. He shook his head slowly, sounding almost as though he, too, was choking back his emotions. "YOU'RE GOING TO ESCAPE, AND YOU'LL NEVER LOOK BACK."

"Not without you!" I protested.

He sighed, resting the full weight of his head on my hand. "YOU CAN'T SAVE ME. YOU COULDN'T HAVE, NO MATTER WHAT." I felt my heart twist in grief, wishing that it was me instead of him.

I nearly choked on my own tears. "I don't want you to leave me!" I repeated. "Y-you can't. Y-you're a robot. R-robot's can't die."

Giving me a weak stare that was rapidly becoming more and more empty, he shook his head. "M-MAYBE... I'M MORE HUMAN-LIKE THAN EITHER OF US THOUGHT."

I looked away. "You always hated living things. What makes me so special?"

"CAN'T YOU TELL...?" his smile faltered. "YOU'RE YOU."

"I'm not special!"

"YOU REALLY BELIEVE THAT, DON'T YOU?"

With a shuddering breath, I barely managed to keep my gaze steady. "We could've been such great friends."

He was silent for many moments. "I THOUGHT WE ALREADY WERE," he rasped. I screwed my eyes shut, failing to keep another stream of tears running down my already matted cheek fur. I couldn't stand seeing him like this, but my mind was fixed on a single thing: _I'm never going to see him again._

Slowly, I opened my eyes and ran my hand around the hole, hardly daring to look at his face. I knew what I would see moments before I looked. His gaze was blank, his weight rested entirely on my hand, and sparks no longer flew from the hole in his torso. His hand was stretched out, as if to comfort me, but had fallen short of my shoulder. "WX? WX!"

No reply.

"No..." I whispered. I leaned over him, shaking him slightly. "Please..." I whimpered. "get up... don't do this..." Why must this happen to me? Why did it happen to _him_? _Why_? I've had so much grief in my life, and now, the only creature in the world that was ready to accept me for me, was gone.

I shook my head, hoping it was just a nightmare, and when I woke up again I would be back on the surface and this whole episode was just a dream, which would leave me soon, but stopped short mid-head-turn, slightly shocked. Next to me, a small, glowing white flower had grown. _That wasn't there before._ But with my mind so clouded with grief, I wasn't even sure any more.

Without a sound, I picked the flower and lay it on his chest, whispering farewells to the one who gave his life for mine. The light pulsed for a moment before the light dimmed, and the battle behind me crashed back into reality. _Farewell, my friend. May one day, our paths cross again. That day shall be glorious, and the very Earth will sing with glee at the reunion._

In that moment of pure grief, I felt something surge up inside me, a powerful wave of rage probably brought on by Webber. Not caring anymore, we let the spider take over, and we turned, giving the Ancient Guardian a glare and expressed every emotion we felt into, _**"You killed my best friend! And now you're going to pay."**_


	51. Chapter 51 Stone Cold and Burning Rage

**Part 2**

 **A Distant Land**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

"I'm sick of this!" Nick spat, bringing out his sword again as the Ancient Guardian prepared to ram us again.

"It doesn't do anything!" I protested. "And _where the heck are Webber and WX?"_

Much to my surprise, Nick leaped nimbly out of the way of the Guardian and stuck the glowing sword deep into it's side, leaving a gaping gash down it's length. It collapsed and slid into a wall. "Did you kill it?" I whispered.

He shook his head silently, coming to stand beside it. It's eyes were still open, and it was still breathing, but something seemed off about it. With a start, I realized that it had small black pupils. Slowly, it became slightly smaller, it's gray fur turning a tanish color and it's horn slightly duller.

"What did you...?"

"What are you _doing_?" I heard Webber spit, and I looked just beyond it to see the spider, his gaze wild with grief and rage and his cheek fur matted and wet. _What's_ his _problem? It's not like we killed it._

The guardian struggled to it's feet and slowly swung it's head to look between Nick and Webber, then over Webber's head. Cautiously, I brought out my spear and pointed it in it's direction. But it continued to stare over Webber's head. _What are they looking at?_

Then it hit me. "Hey Webber, where's WX?"

He stepped back several paces, lowering his gaze with tears running down his cheeks.

"W-Webber?"

The Ancient Guardian snarled something, and Webber looked up at it again. "Why?" He demanded. "Why should we forgive you?"

Something else in reply, and Webber wiped a fresh wave of tears from his cheeks. Suddenly, the voice of the Ancient Guardian seemed to reverberate around the room. "For many years _ **,**_ I've _ **waiting**_ for you. _**Four**_ who have become one." He looked at Nick. "The _**Keeper**_ of power." He swung his head towards me. "The _**friend**_ who never gives up." He shifted slightly and in the shadows, I thought I caught a glimpse of metal. _Was WX hurt?_ "He who gave his _**life**_ for friend." My heart twisted and I felt dizzy for a second. _WX is_ dead? Finally, he rested his gaze on Webber. "And the new _ **captor**_ of the Nightmare Throne."

Everything was silent except for the quiet pitter-patter of spiders walking as Erika hurried towards him to comfort him, and he broke down crying in her fur. "Captor?" I finally choked out.

Shaking his head sadly, the Guardian's voice once more become snarls and spits, occasionally turning to Nick to say something to him. What was he saying? Was he speaking spider? Finally, Webber's tear-stained voice rose above his. "But that's _impossible!_ We've been there!" Followed by a, "But he was our best friend." Finally, he nodded, turning away. "Yes, Guardian. But first," slowly, like a person running in water, he made his way over to the fallen WX and bending down next to him for many moments before standing up again and giving me a steady stare. "Let's go," he croaked.

Erika rushed over to him, bombarding him with snarls and growls that I could only guess were questions, since he shook his head and began to limp back towards the entrance of the labyrinth. Glancing at Webber, I rushed towards WX. _It can't be true... can it?_

Sure enough, I spotted a gaping hole in his torso, his gaze blank but his expression at death was that of victory and purpose. Did he really give his life for Webber? I could hardly believe it at first, but now, I realized that it was true. I bent my head for a moment before setting off after Webber again. "Webber?" I asked gently, placing my hand on his shoulder. He shrugged it off.

"What?" He sounded like he had a bone stuck in his throat.

"Are... are you okay?"

"Okay...?" He echoed sadly. Suddenly, he turned on me. "Do we look okay? We came down here to fight the Guardian! Sounds easy enough." He spat. "Our best friend was killed. Then, the _killer_ asks for forgiveness, then tells us, 'Oh, by the way, you're doomed to rot on the Nightmare Throne for an eternity'. Tell us, Wilson," his voice became hushed again, and I could barely understand his sobbed words. "what is fine about this...?"

"He did what he thought was best."

"It's should've been us, you know. It should've impaled us. He-" his voice shook. "He pushed us out of the way."

"He did for a good reason, surely?"

"He didn't want us to suffer," he choked out. "But... what he didn't realize," he hung his head low. "is that right now, we're suffering more than anyone could have ever imagined. Everyone, _everyone_ , we get close to-" he drew in a shuddering breath. "Leave us, Wilson. We need to be alone."

Unsure of how to help any further, I gave him one last, pitiful, glance, then ran to catch up with Nick. "Is he all right?" The blue-eyed warrior asked.

I shook my head. "No. He's grieving."

Nick stopped at looked at me for a second. "Were they really that close?"

"Closer than any of us realized, not even them." I carried on walking, and Nick tailed me.

Behind us, I heard a spider's talk, and heard Webber reply. Beside us, Erika rushed over and butted my hand. Her gaze gave away all of her worry for the nine year old. "Don't worry, he'll be fine," I assured her. She didn't look convinced, and fell back again to match Webber's pace.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" I had never heard Nick sound that concerned about anything. He seemed to be fairly layed back, though it was obvious he was hardened to fighting and death.

"I'm not sure. He's never had it this bad before. I've never, ever, _ever,_ seen him _this_ bad before."

For awhile, we all walked in silence, staying within the light of my lantern, though Webber was barely at the edge of vision, trying to stay in the dark but not deep enough to be attacked by the night monster. Finally, ahead, I saw the faint glimmer of starlight that showed us where the sinkhole was. Once again, I heard Erika's concerned voice of reason.

Without a reply from Webber, I saw her gaze become even more scared for him, and she wordlessly helped us back up to the surface. I turned to her quickly. "Come with us!" I urged her. "You're the only one Webber seems ready to listen to."

She shook her head sadly, snarling something but realizing I couldn't understand her. She dipped her head and vanished back again into the ground. With a last glance at where the spider left, I tried to get my bearings back.

I took a deep breath of fresh, clean air, then began to make my way back to camp.


	52. Chapter 52 Time After Time

**_A/N:_ Heyo, guys. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! I couldn't ask for better readers! Reviews, followers, favorites... you guys are awesome and my inspiration to keep writing. Please enjoy and keep 'em coming =D**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 _Please, just bring us to where we want to be,_ we silently begged as we closed our burning eyes, hoping to fall asleep without being plagued by nightmares. The day before, the Guardian had told us everything; from the proud civilization he protected his own fall to the darkness. He had then claimed that the Ancients were nothing but legends, even though we had been there before. _Please... take us to the Ancients!_

No matter what, though, we still kept hearing the noises of the nighttime around us, and the faint chill kept biting at our skin. _Don't make this worse than it already is..._

 _"Beast!"  
_

 _"Villain!"_

 _"Monster!"_

Still, sleep did not come. Eventually, however, something round and hard hit us painfully in the back. Eyes open in an instant, we jumped back and stared at the stone, then at where it came from. Everything was pitch black and blurry, and we couldn't make out anything. Then, another object, sharper than the last, hit us in the cheek.

"Hey! What was that for?" I snarled.

 _"Throw it in the pit!"_

 _"Cook it alive!"_

 _"Stone it to death!"_

 _"Feed it to our Guardian!"_

Guardian? Blinking, everything slowly came into focus. We were surrounded on all sides by enraged and... _terrified...?_ people. Several of them were armed with stones. Another one hit us in the foot, and we flipped around to confront them, but they backed away several paces. _What do they think we did_?

Then it hit us.

 _This must be a memory._ We felt sadness well up inside us. The day I tried to come back to my family. The day I nearly died. The day _I_ became _we._ The day that the next time we opened our eyes, we had Wilson and WX waking up next to me.

 _WX..._ The very name brought us more pain than the stones that were being thrown at us.

 _Wait... did they say, 'Guardian'?_

Waiting warily for the next stone, we saw the crowd part to reveal two golden creatures. _Okay, Ancients. Just what we wanted, but not what we expected._ We saw them before, but this time, we were not struck by awe, but fear and anger. We leaped forward to confront them. "What did we do?" I demanded.

Several people in the crowd stepped back to make room for the creatures, and they stared at us for many moments. The first one pointed a shaky finger at me. "That thing," he rasped. "Is an enemy. Kill it."

The second one, however, put his hand on the first one's and slowly brought it down. "Wait," he told him. "That is for our Guardian to decide."

"What did we _do_?" I repeated.

They slowly turned to look at us, then at each other. Simultaneously, they let out a strange trill-sounding noise, almost like a bird call, then stepped back. Everyone was silent.

Then, a loud _thump_ was heard.

Then another.

I cringed, shrinking back away from the noise, then the crowd parted again. _The Ancient Guardian..._ I thought darkly, staring at the beast. He looked like he did when it was talking to us. Smaller and tan, an almost friendly gleam in his eyes. Then his gaze landed on us, and darkened.

Shaking his great head, he nodded off the crowd with a simple motion and stepped closer to us, nudging us gently with his horn. "Spider?" He asked after several moments. "What are you doing here?"

"We should be asking you the same thing," I shot back.

Shaking his head furiously, his gentle gaze slowly turned more menacing. "What did you think you could gain by visiting this place?" he demanded. "If your looking for your sister, don't bother. Why do you think you're here? She's dead, and they think you killed her."

Despite the fact it felt like our heart was being tugged out of our chest, this was old news. "Thanks, we know that already," I snarled.

He growled. "If your looking for your friend, you're out of luck there too."

"Because of you!" I flashed, taking a step towards the rhino. "Do you have _any_ idea how we felt? How it felt to have your best friend _die_ in front of you?"

"Robots cannot die," he murmured quietly.

"Close to it! And then, you not only ask for forgiveness when you have done nothing but make our life worse, but say that we are doomed to rot forever on the Nightmare Throne!"

Suddenly, the Guardian started to look his age, shaking his head again, but slower this time. "It was not I who spoke of the captor of the Throne. Every captor, from the first to Maxwell, their fate was written since the beginning of time." His eyes flashed with grief at the mention of Maxwell. "Do you know I was the creature that Maxwell summoned? We were almost like," he seemed to choke on his own words. "friends. But, because of what the Ancients foretold, I had to betray him, and drag him into the dreadful place. You must feel lucky at least you were brought with your friends."

"What about Nick? We understand Wilson and-" I broke off. "him... since we pretty much had to rely on them for survival. But what about Nick? What did your precious Ancients foretell about him?"

"You don't know?" He seemed surprised.

"Do we look like we do?"

"Nick is something... very special. A machine of war originally, but reformed by his own goodness at heart. He is something called, 'The Power Keeper'."

"What's the Power Keeper?"

"Several Power Keepers have been alive, but the space in between them is so spacious, it is almost impossible to find one. You are lucky to not only know one, but be friends with him."

We snorted impatiently. "What _is it?_ "

"That question, I cannot answer, for not even I can truly comprehend the true form of the Power Keeper. That blade he has it a part of the chain. His eyes are the window to his soul."

"The Soulless Automaton," I whispered, finally realizing just what the title meant.

"Indeed. But tell me, if you didn't come here for your sister or your friend, and I highly doubt you came here to learn about something you are not, then why are you here?"

"Isn't it obvious? We want to know what we're supposed to do."

"Demanding much? Come now, if I told you _everything,_ what else would there be? The human mind craves for knowledge, but having it all gives it nothing to work for. I can't make you stupid, now can I?"

Finally letting our anger to get the best of us, we grabbed the closest rock and slashed it across his cheek. He didn't fight back, but instead, stared forlornly at the drizzle of blood that trickled from the scratch. "I suppose I deserve that," he murmured. "But that isn't changing my answer. Get it yourself. I can't help you, even if I wanted to." He sighed. "That's my curse. To have all this knowledge, but unable to share it with anyone." He closed his eyes for many moments before lifting his horn slightly and letting out a bird like noise, bringing the two golden creatures hurrying back to bow before its feet.

"Yes, my Guardian?" They asked simultaneously.

"Tell the village," he rasped. "That he is innocent and should be honored as a hero. He has gone against everything he had to try and save the two children."

Their eyes flashing, the bowed even lower. "As you wish."

"And before you go, I must give name to this creature." He slowly turned to look at us. "From this day forward, you will be known as Webber, The Indigestible."


	53. Chapter 53 Shipwrecked

_**Wilson's POV**_

"Come on, you gotta eat something," I urged.

"We're not hungry," Webber growled, refusing to meet my gaze. I shot a helpless look at Nick, who simply shrugged.

"Do you really think starving yourself will help any?"

"We're not starving ourself," he protested. "Just not hungry."

"When was the last time you had _anything_ to eat?"

He didn't reply.

Finally getting fed up, I sighed and turned away. "You really shouldn't be that harsh," Nick pointed out.

"I know that," I snapped. "He's getting on my nerves."

Shaking his head slowly, Nick joined Webber in the I'm-not-replying-to-anything-Wilson-says circle. With a hint of anger at the two, I let it out with a sigh and turned to the sunrise. "Well, a couple of us _are_ getting hungry-" Nick nodded vigorously. "-so I may as well do something useful." Turning to Nick, I whispered in his ear, "Watch him, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

He gave me a quizzical look. "By stupid you mean...?"

"You'll know if he's about to do something," I muttered.

With an audible sigh, Nick nodded again. He understood.

Before I set off, I shot another glance at the spider. He was turned away from us, his elbows on his knees and his head resting on his hands. I obviously wasn't going to get anywhere with him anytime soon. I was out until dusk, and when I returned I almost ran right into Nick. His gaze drifted to a rabbit I carried before snapping back to my face.

"Yeah, have you seen-"

"Webber? No. You lost him? Kinda figured," I finished for him, guessing both sides of the conversation.

"Do you think...?"

"He did something stupid? Probably? What you're most likely thinking. Gosh, I hope not."

"So... are we gonna-"

"Look for him? Of course."

"Stop-"

"Doing that? Naw."

He looked off into the distance. "So, where do we start?"

 _ **Webber's POV**_

Wearily, we climbed the slope that led to the mountain of cave entrances. Pangs more painful than hunger shook us, but we pushed forward, knowing exactly what we were looking for. There! In the shadow of a pine tree was a birchnut. But, not just any birchnut. We slowly made our way towards it and picked up the empty shell. Inside of it was a fine, white powdery substance. _Moonrock._

We vaguely remembered WX mentioning it, but what was important about it slipped our mind. He put it under the tree because it was the only tree on the hill so it would be easy to remember the location of. We blinked at it, wondering what to do next.

Our gaze drifted to the depths of the forest that lay beyond the hills. What was beyond that? Oceans, we knew, but beyond that? Surely the ocean had to end sometime, right? This is an idea we would never come up with before. We had too much to lose back then.

But...

Wilson and Nick had each other. Maybe it was time for us to go our separate ways. The last thing we would ever want is for us to keep them from escaping. Maybe we should find our own way.

Before we even knew what we were doing, the tree had been felled and we were carving the inside out with a sharp piece of flint. _Stop_! We thought angrily to ourself, but we kept carving at the tree wood until it was completely hollow on the inside.

Then we were at the sea, looking over it with the faint tank of salt in the air.

Then we were at the bottom of the cliff with the makeshift boat in the shore. What were we doing? _Trying to find a better life_ , we reminded ourself. But, what about Nick and Wilson? Wouldn't they miss us? _But this is so that they can escape, too._

Besides, we had no idea how far new land was- if there was any at all- and how long it would take to get there. We didn't know if there would be food or more monsters than here. But, despite our mental protest, we found ourself climbing into the boat, feeling it dip under our weight but not tip over.

The idea of storms didn't even occur to us. Lightning struck around us, only narrowing missing the boat. We grabbed onto the sides of it, grinding our teeth to keep us from crying out in terror. Behind us, lightning struck just inches away from our boat, creating a large wave and the boat flipped over, trapping us under it in just a small bubble of air, which the relentless storm pounding on the top of it caused the bubble to get smaller and smaller until we were forced completely underwater.

Panicking, we tried to gasp for breath but sucked in a lungful of salty water. Death by drowning. Fantastic. Finally, we gave up struggling and let the thrashing waves take us over...

 _Ugh... what happened?_ Even though we had been at sea... _a day? A week?_ under us we sensed hard ground. Well, not hard, but sandy. Were we washed up back to shore? Suddenly, we were broken from our trance by a shrill squawking noise.

"Smooth sailing... chump," It crowed. Opening our eyes and rubbing the blur from them, we saw nothing but a collection of red feathers take off in a flurry of wings.

We learned something very important that day.

You can have very different thoughts upon waking up on a desolate island.

For starters, if you wake up in a grassland with an arrogant robot and a weird scientist, obviously your first reaction is happiness to at least not be alone.

But if the first clear picture you see is a monkey just inches away from your face with a banana sticking out of its mouth and a tarnished crown on its head, your going to be freaking out.

Especially if said monkey can speak _spider_ to you.

"Well, this is new," he commented. His voice was higher pitched than a normal spider's voice, so he hadn't completely mastered the language, but at least he had correct grammar.

We struggled to our feet and stared at the monkey. "Who are you?"

"Who are _you_?" He countered. "I mean, I've seen spiders before, but never one that looks like you, and especially never one that just randomly washes up. Usually they drown first."

"We're Webber," I informed him, hoping he would give more information.

"Name's Wilbur," the monkey said matter-of-factually. He looked thoughtful for a second before adjusting his crown. "The Monkey King."

 ** _A/N:_ I've having _so_ much  fin right now. Heh, oh, don't listen to me. Though this most likely will get fun. (Strange, I was planning on sad chapters for awhile. D'ah, no matter)**


	54. Chapter 54 'Ape', Not 'Monkey'

_**A/N:**_ **Oh my gosh. I'm actually quite happy with how this is going. First of all, since Wilbur has no quotes in-game, and thus, no indication on his behavior, he is** _ **just as good as an OC!**_ **Not really, but at least I can do whatever I want with his personality. And, hey! All you need is a good excuse like the one presented in the next 8 paragraphs (speaking counts as a paragraph) and you can do** _ **anything**_ **with a character like him. And he likes emphasis on words. He will be using a lot of** _ **italicized**_ **words! Hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"So, how'd you become the 'Monkey King'," I asked Wilbur curiously. He seemed thoughtful for a moment.

"It's something one's more born into than anything, I guess," he answered after a few moments. "How'd you become like that?" He shot back.

"Long story."

"Ah," he nodded, running ahead of us for a moment to look ahead before falling back to our pace. "So, usually, I don't tend to see many survivors during Monsoon Season. Plenty of drowned folk, don't get me wrong."

"What do you mean? It's Spring, isn't it?"

"'Spring'? What's that exactly?" He answered his own question almost immediately. "Oh, of course. You're land's version of Monsoon Season. I can assume you know what Monsoon Season is...?"

"Not really," I admitted. It felt weird, as always, when speaking in full conversations in the spider's tongue, but even more so when when what you're speaking too isn't even a spider also. "How did you learn how to speak spider?"

"As the king, I strive to learn every native language on this island," he puffed out his chest importantly. "and I'm not bad at doing so if I do say so myself."

"Do you know English?"

"English? Eh, how would I ever learn? Out here, heck, you drown before you can get here. Survivors? Dead within a week, be it by drowning afterwards or starvation. I'm warning you about this, wherever you hail from, you _will_ have much more problem finding food. You look fairly well-fed despite your puny frame, but as for the moment...?" As if on cue, our stomach growled a protest. When was the last time we even ate? _Before we left._ "you seem hungry."

"Yeah, quite, actually."

Suddenly, the monkey shot off, his tail streaming out behind him.

"Hey! Where are you going?'

Sighing, we leaned up against a tree, awaiting his return. We felt something touch our shoulder and looked up to find him hanging to one of the palm's branches upside down by his tail and holding out a banana to us. _Wait, how is his crown still on his head...?_ Stifling laughter at the thought, we gratefully took it from him and peeled away the tough yellow skin and eagerly bit into the fruit itself. Another think we missed dearly, fresh fruit.

"Hmm, you look blissful," he observed, watching us closely.

"We're not used to fruit," I answered, swallowing.

"How come?" He tilted his head slightly. "How long have you been at sea?"

"We're not sure," I told him, searching our memory for anything that could've told us the passage of time. "But we've been stranded on another island with a few other people for awhile."

"What happened? Were you washed away?"

"No, we're... we're not sure what happened."

"Well, who were the others?"

"A scientist, named Wilson," I said, wincing as we remembered the injury to our eye. "And another man, named Nick. We're not too sure what he is," we closed our eyes.

"Is that it? You sounded like you were talking about more than two people."

"There was a third one. His name was WX-78."

"What happened to him? Did you not like him or anything?"

"He died."

"He _died_?" He echoed, his tail lashing. "Was he... even human?" 

"He was a robot."

"How did he _die_?"

"He was impaled," I looked away. "We're not too comfortable with talking about it."

"Oh, sorry..." he examined us for several seconds, which slowly stretched into minutes. "So... want another 'nana?"

"You're trying a bit too hard," I joked. "Don't hurt yourself. We really didn't expect to meet anyone here, especially not a talking monkey. The last thing we need happening is for you to kill yourself trying to please us."

"Hey! Who you calling talking monkey?" He puffed out his chest again. "I'm not _talking_ I'm simply _speaking_ in a _language_ you _understand_. And I am not a _monkey_ I am a _Prime Ape_."

"But, you just got done saying you were the 'Monkey King'."

"I am the _king_ of monkeys _and other things too!_ Just because I am the _king_ of _monkeys_ doesn't mean I _am_ a monkey."

"Okay, okay, we get it," for the first time in several days, we allowed ourself to laugh at the obstinate 'ape'. "But, why do you have a tail if you're an ape?"

He rolled his eyes. "To _grab stuff with. Duh!_ And here I was, thinking that you are the most _intelligent life-form_ on this _stinking island,_ and you present me with a stupid question like that? Shame on you, Webber. Heywait-" he blurted before we could say anything. His eyes were fixed on a small blue creature scuttling across the sand. "That's a crab," he informed us.

"We know what a crab is!" I hissed.

"Oh, okay. But watch this." Suddenly, he lunged forward, landing a few feet away from the crustacean. At first, we weren't sure what he was trying to show us, but then the crab saw the monk- _ape._

" _Bwgobloblowhloba!"_ It cried, fleeing for its burrow and leaving a very happy Wilbur laughing in the sand.

"Didya' hear that?" He gasped in between spurts of laughter. "We have entire _games_ about scaring those things to their burrows _just_ to hear that!"

"Who's 'we'?" I asked, hope rising in our chest of more sentient creatures.

"My loyal subjects and I." He finally recovered enough to stand up, albeit shakily. However, his answer was enough to send us laughing in the sand.

"Okay, that's cute, for a monkey, but seriously, who's we?"

"I am not a monkey," he said very matter-of-factually. "and I'm serious. My fellow _apes_ ," he gave us a meaningful stare.

"Do they speak spider too?"

"Pfft, ahahahahahahahahhahano. I'm the only one. _However_! I can translate! I'm good at speaking monke- AW GOSH DARN YOU WEBBER!" His serious voice erupted into a very annoyed yell. "ApeImeantape," he blurted out. "But I will warn you. They... _well_... just... don't get on their bad side."

"Why? Not that we would, _but_..."

"They have this awful habit of, yeah, you probably guessed it," he added, seeing our grimace. "Poop-flinging."

"How in the _world_ did they get that habit?"

"Because!" He exclaimed, his voice suddenly wild. " _I_ _told them to do it!"_

" _Why_?"

"Because it's what apes dooooooo!" By now, his tail was waving wildly and he was circling us with increasing speed. "Come on let's goooooo!"

 _ **A/N:**_ **Holy crud I love writing with this character. I am having** _ **way**_ **too much fun recently.**


	55. Chapter 55 Don't Die

_**-?'s POV**_

 __Water dripped far in the distance, the noise broken by the faint tune of an old ragtime song, playing over and over again. In the depths of the shadows, watchful eyes belonging to no one stared curiously as the figure, Charlie, slipped down the halls, appearing quite proud of her catch. Well, she would have been.

Unlike the first time she got her hands on someone, this one did not struggle at all. The first person in forever she had had fought and thrashed until she chained him down. But this one, almost seemed to... want her to take him. He simply followed her down the long, dark halls, holding his head high in a sign of pride.

"Stop doing that!" She hissed, annoyed with his disposition. "You're not supposed to be happy!"

He didn't even bother to look at her, let alone reply, and she growled to herself before entering the final hall that lead to the throne room. She could barely make eye contact with the Throne's current victim. He who was nothing like he used to be. He who was no longer himself.

He who she no longer loved.

He straightened at the sight of her and her prisoner, though if you looked at the scene, you could only guess that it was he who was holding her prisoner.

"So... you brought him," he observed, his voice cold and slithering.

"Yes."

He was quiet for a few more moments. "So, do you think this will end him? Do you think by leaving _him_ gone, that he would soon fall?"

She chuckled. "Oh, William. Haven't you realized? We've already won."

The man on the throne lurched forward. "Don't you _ever_ use that name! I am the Amazing Maxwell, that life is gone." His eyes blazed with cold fire for a moment before forcing himself to relax and resumed his defeated stance. "What do you mean, 'already won'?"

Suddenly, the prisoner staggered closer to the man. "WHAT DO YOU WANT?" He demanded. "AND WOULD YOU TURN THAT INFERNAL PHONOGRAPH OFF?"

"Just look, Maxwell," she urged, ignoring him.

He raised his brow, and the shadows seemed to press further to see what was going to be shown. Behind the throne, a cloud of dust and a tar-like substance formed. The center showed static for a few moments before clearing out to show two men working by a fire.

Charlie's prisoner eyed it cautiously, before turning to face her. "WHERE IS HE?" he spat. "WHAT DID YOU DO WITH HIM?"

"I didn't do anything," she told him sweetly.

He turned to the cloud. "THEN WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS WEBBER?"

Maxwell burst into a fit of laughing. "Webber? That pathetic creature? What do you want with him? Oh, I forgot," he sneered. "he's your 'friend'. But friendship is not why your here, oh wait, I guess it is." He put his finger to his lips. "Hmm, I seem to recall it's actually _because_ of your 'friendship' that you had to suffer in the first place. Does... a very certain rhino ring a bell?"

"WHERE IS HE?" He demanded again.

"Temper, temper. Oh, fine. Now I'm curious too. Where's the spider?"

The cloud turned static again, but this time, did not clear out.

"Hmm, strange. He's not dead, or it'd be him here instead of you. But, I can't seem to reach out to him. Perhaps he's out of our range?" He tapped the arm of the throne, looking mockingly thoughtful. "Oh well, surely if he's out there, he'll die soon anyway. After all," his voice took on a deep, demonic note. "I have friends in many places."

Shadow tentacles rose from the ground around the throne, and Charlie stepped back, fear flashing in her ice cold gaze. However, the prisoner did not back down, even when two appeared on either side of him, easily wrapping around his arms and dragging him to the ground.

 _They're... so cold..._ his mind cried, falling into darkness as the cold, dripping shapes rooted him to the spot.

 _ **-Webber's POV**_

 __We shot up, heart pounding, eyes wide. Next to us, Wilbur was still sleeping, dawn visible on the horizon, providing just enough light to see. We fell back into the sand, trying to shake the nightmares off our mind.

Wilbur groggily opened his eyes and blinked. "Nightmares?" He guessed.

We nodded, still trying to calm our racing heart.

He straightened up, stretching out his muscles and shifting the sand and soil back into place from the makeshift bed with his tail. "Want to talk about it?"

We opened our mouth to confide in him, but we couldn't form the words. What was it about? We just remembered something cold and slippery. We shivered, still feeling the strange texture rubbing against our fur. Instead, we shook our head, hoping to fall back asleep. Believe it or not, the sand was actually quite soft and comfortable, especially with the moss lining we gathered the day before.

Of course, when we finally managed to pull our mind from the dream, Wilbur was already wide-awake and hyper. "So, what we doing today?" As he asked that, a crab crawled out of its burrow nearby and he wrapped his tail around it, watching it struggle for several moments as it made its strange noises of fear.

"Perhaps meet the rest of the prime monkey squad?" I suggested, smiling as he tensed as we, once again, called him a monkey.

"Perhaps I should show you the ins and outs of this place. You come from the mainland, yes?"

"Yes. But-"

"Well, sorry to tell you, but we are on a large archipelago. No large island for miles. So, you should really know how to do stuff," he informed us, still grasping the crab. "Now, I know that you can most likely swim, but here, don't even think about it. Ya' see, there is this ocean monster thingy-majig. It- well, I'll just show you. Observe." He lashed his tail again, flinging the crab into the ocean. It thrashed in the waves for a few moments before finally seeming to get the hang of it, and it started paddling strongly back to shore. Suddenly, its eyes widened and it started paddling more wildly. Then the ocean was deadly silent for about a minute, when large shadow hands reached out from its depths and gripped the crustacean, dragging it under the waves, leaving nothing but a few small bubbles where it disappeared.

"What... just happened?"

" _That_ , my friend, is why you _don't_ , and I repeat, _**don't**_ swim." The monkey/ape leaped up on a sand dune and wrapped his tail around his paws, his gaze serious. "Now, listen up and _don't_ die the ways I tell you to. Like, if I tell you how to _not_ die by water beefalo, I swear, if you die by water beefalo, I will personally drag your body back to shore and thrash you. Got it? Now, if I tell you to not die by water beefalo and you die by sea hounds, then I'll be fine. And your body. Your body will stay intact too. That is," he added mischievously. "if you decide to listen to me and die any way that's _not_ the ways I tell you."


	56. Chapter 56 Still Haven't Gotten Anywhere

_**A/N:**_ **Warning: Lots of fourth wall breakage, courtesy of Wilbur, our very special monkey guest.**

 **Wilbur:** _ **IT'S APE!**_

 **Me: Oh, right, sorry**

 **Webber: We're not**

 **Wilbur:** _ **NO ONE ASKED YOUR OPINION!**_

 __ **Me: Ooh, temper, temper**

 **Webber: Hey, didn't we hear that line last chapter?**

 **Maxwell: Yep, you're welcome**

 **Webber/Wilbur/Me:** _ **GET OUT OF HERE MAXWELL YOU'RE NOT WELCOME**_

 __ **Me: ANYWAY! Let's get to the thingy before you two strangle each other**

 **Webber: That also sounds familiar**

 **Wilbur: Yeah, didn't you're little scientist friend say that all the time about you're little robot friend and you**

 **Me: Shuddup and lemme write. Oh yeah, and also, I just wanted to apologize for-**

 **Wilbur: This story has a horrible author who doesn't know how to get anything done**

 **Me: Yeah, that's sounds pretty accurate**

 **Wilbur: And this next chapter won't even get anything done, either. So... man, I am _awesome_ at filler chapters!  
**

 **Webber: -glares at Wilbur- Uh-huh**

 **Wilbur: Hesh, what's his problem?  
**

 **Me: ANYWAY! Back to the thingy!**

 _ **Webber's POV  
**_

 __"Okay, so no death by water beefalo, prime apes-"

"That would be embarrassing."

"um... drowning was on the list, I'm pretty sure. And... oh! Right, starvation and... face... plant... into... a... volcano? Wait, what?"

Wilbur nodded. "That does happen, believe it or not."

" _What volcano is there to face-plant into exactly?"_

"Oooooooooooooh we should go visit one!" The prime ape whipped his tail excitedly. "Comeonletsgoooooo!" He wrapped his tail around our wrist and began to drag us forward. We struggled from his grip. "Hey, what are you doing?" He complained.

"Um... can we _not_ go and see if it is possible to fall into a volcano?"

He heaved a long, drawn out sigh. "You're no fuuuuuuuuun," he whined. "I've shown tons of animals the volcano. And no one has died falling into it. Wait, no, scratch that, no one of _importance_ has died falling into it. I mean, so long as you're one of the main characters, the author _can't_ kill you off. Wait, scratch that too, she killed WX-78. But that's not the point!"

"Wait... what?"

"Hey, do you think that I can have some of your 'main character' invincibility? Wait, no!" He puffed out his chest. "Now that you're here, _I am one of the main characters!"_ He jumped in the air triumphantly. "That is _so_ awesome. You are forever my best friend and I shall never die!"

"And then you die," I joked. "And we will laugh. Besides, being our best friend doesn't mean you won't die. In fact, that means you most likely _will_ die."

"Oh, in that case. _YOU ARE MY WORSE ENEMY I HOPE YOU DIE BURN!_ Like that? Was that convincing? I hope that was convincing." The ape jerked his head up as he spoke, staring off into space as though watching something that wasn't there.

"Could've fooled us. _Anyway_ , so... what happens next?"

"Oh, I forgot, hold on." He pulled a pamphlet out of nowhere, flipping through it. Um... oh, yes! I was going to show you the volcano."

"Wait, where'd you get that? And what is it?"

"This, my friend, is a piece of papyrus. The edges are deadly. Yes, be afraid! For the papyrus, or paper, can cause only the most painful of scratches, also called... a... _paper cut! Dun dun DUUUUUUUUNNNNNN!_ Also, as for where I got it, I carry it around with me. I like to pretend it's armor."

"How come we've never seen it, then?"

"It's hidden in my fur," he explained, straightening to show his chest with was covered in a thin brown fuzz, certainly not deep enough for hiding anything in.

We didn't bother to ask, knowing we'd just get some strange response from him. "Okay, back to the volcano. Didn't we say we _didn't_ want to face-plant into one?"

"You won't face-plant into it. In fact, you shouldn't even fall into it. No one has before."

"But didn't you say that no one _important_ has fallen in there? What about non-important people?"

"Oh, don't worry, they didn't fall," he assured us. "They were pushed."

" _Pushed?_ By whom?"

"Who else? Me."

"You... pushed... them... into... a volcano? Why...?"

"I was bored," he said, scratching behind his ear. "Needed some entertainment. Quite amusing, actually."

We stepped back, suddenly terrified of the monkey.

"Actually, no, they called me 'monkey' one too many times. Not a smart idea, just to tell ya'." He smirked. "Man, I didn't think a spider could turn pale, but whoa you went white right there, I'm tellin' ya'."

"Fine," I sighed. "Take us to the darned volcano already."

"Yeeeees! Finally!" He wrapped his tail around our wrist again. "And... we're going!" He yanked us to the nearest other biome, a jungle, we guessed by the clumps of brambles and random patches of... was that bamboo? "First step: Make a boat-"

"Wait, what? Why?"

"Who what when where why how?"

"No," I sighed. "Why are we making a boat?" 

" _Because, silly,_ the volcano is _in the ocean_ but it's _really cool_ and I'd _love to show you_ oh we're gonna be best friends!" He giggled, grabbing a few pieces of flint from the ground and somehow... wait... how'd he do that...? created a machete.

"Wait... how'd you do that?" We tipped our head to the side.

"Magic!" He exclaimed, whacking at one of the bamboo shoots and chucking the stalks at us, nearly hitting us in the foot.

"Hey! Watch where you're throwing stuff!" I spat, bending down to grab the shoot.

Wilbur turned to look at us, eyes flashing. He grabbed a shoot himself with his tail, holding it like a sword. "So, you think you can defeat me, the Monkey King?"

We posed the stalk like a sword, too. "Ha! We can defeat anyone!" He took a few steps forward, holding it out threateningly. We copied his movements, until we were only a few paces away from each other, when we crossed out 'swords'.

"Ready?" He hissed.

"Ready," I nodded, and we both swung the swords with all our might, hearing them clank together with a hollow 'thunk'.

He raised his brow. "Interesting. You appear to be adept at the sword fighting techniques."

The sword fight went on. "Naturally. After all, we had to use a spear for awhile. Swords are no different."

Finally, he managed to disarm us and hold the bamboo shoot inches away from our throat. Terrifying images of our fight with Wilson flashed in our memory. _He could've killed us..._

 _"You're right. He could've."_

 _Not you! Stop it!_

 _"Aw, come on, won't you listen to me? After all, you_ have _betrayed Wilson_ and _Nick. What do you have to lose?"_

 _Um... maybe our life? Maybe Wilbur?_

 _"Ha! You're so young, so naive... so pathetic."_

 _Wait, what do you mean?_

He didn't respond. Angrily, we clenched our fists and glared up at Wilbur, who looked slightly hurt.

"What's with the dirty look?" He asked innocently. "I didn't _hurt_ you or anything."

"Nothing," I growled through gritted teeth.

He gave us a doubtful look, but didn't press the issue. Instead, he turned back to the bamboo he was hacking at. "You fought well... for a spider," he teased. Suddenly, he stopped in his work, and the shoots clattered hollowly against the ground.

"Um... Wilbur?"

"H-hold on," he stammered. "I'll b-be right back."

Curiously, we watched as he shot off, tail streaming behind him. We tipped our head slightly in confusion. _What got into him?_

 _ **A/N:**_ **Holy crud it's hard to get anything done with him. I haven't gotten** _ **anywhere**_ **in this part of the storyline yet... that's kinda pathetic for me. Anyways, my brother, ThePowerKeeper, and I are now writing a sister fic for this story called** **Don't Starve: Ruins of Reality** **that is creepy/funny/friggin' awesome so you guys should totally check it out. ;) Well, that's it for now, guys. Cya!**


	57. Chapter 57 The Monkey King

_**?'s POV**_

 __Maxwell paced the domain. Although he was still physically stuck to the Nightmare Throne, mentally, here he was, waiting for him. "Where is he?" He asked bitterly.

"Maxwell?" Came a voice, not too far down the hall. Standing in the entrance to the room was his puppet.

"There you are! I've been waiting." His voice lowered to a growl. "You know I don't like waiting."

"Sorry! It took forever for me to get somewhere safe."

"Hmm, that it is. Look, do you know where the boy is?" He demanded.

"What boy?" The other one asked innocently.

"Don't play smart with me, the boy! Webber!"

His nostrils flared. "Yeah? Why? What's it with you?"

Maxwell sat down, flinching even though he knew this wasn't real, expecting to feel the iron grip of the Throne around his wrists. "He can't survive!" He spat.

"He'll starve."

"You're lying," Maxwell accused.

"I'm not." He held his gaze steadily. "He has no survival instincts. What makes you think he can make it?"

"He has you."

The figure flinched.

"Look. All you need to do, is-"

"I know what you're going to ask, Maxwell, and I won't do it." However much he hated the response, Maxwell knew it all along.

"How about this?" He reached forward and gripped the other by the neck, holding him up until their faces were inches apart. "You kill the boy, and I won't have to turn you're precious island chain into a heap of lava and ashes. Deal?"

His eyes widened. "You wouldn't."

"Oh, wouldn't I?" Maxwell asked dangerously. "You're pushing you're luck."

"Hey, hey, can't we talk this out? Come to a compromise?" He struggled in his grip.

"There is no compromise to make," Maxwell growled.

He was silent for many moments, fuming at the options he had been given. But he knew what was more important than him."Fine," he spat. "But it doesn't mean I have to like it." Slowly, he became transparent, most likely waking up, and he disappeared with a "By the way, you officially suck."

"You know he won't succeed, William," echoed a woman's voice through the corridor.

"Charlie, what did I say?" He snarled.

"Come on, look at him. He's tough."

"He's weak! He always relies on someone! First it was that pathetic robot. Oh, robot's dead? Here's a monkey to make up for it!" He thumped his arms against the chair. "He's dead, Charlie. I'll make sure of it, if I have to do it myself."

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"Come on! Hurry up!" Wilbur urged, practically leaping with giddiness.

"Alright, we're coming, we're coming," I laughed. How could we not be coming, when we were helping to carry the boat? It was a bamboo raft held together by brambles, heavy but not too bad. Whatever was biting him the other day was gone, leaving his old, silly self.

He finally came to the edge of the beach, placing the boat gently in the water. "Get in!"

Smiling, we climbed onto the raft, him jumping on after us, causing the boat to tip slightly and water to slosh up, but drain anyway. However exciting this may be, we didn't like the salty wetness sticking to our fur in clumps.

"Banana?" He asked, pulling one out of virtually nowhere.

Smiling, we graciously took the fruit.

"We will have to make a few stops, though," he informed us. "Mostly to fix the raft. It's quite a ways. Oh! And you'll need this," he pulled a pirate hat out of nowhere and roughly shoved it on our head. "There! Now you're a true pirate!" He smiled. "Off we go!" And he pushed the boat off with his tail.

"Um... now what?"

"Hmm? Oh, we'd better hope we don't get caught in a storm." His nose twitched. "That wouldn't be good."

"Ya' think?" I muttered sarcastically.

We were both silent for quite a time after that, listening to the waves sloshing against the raft.

"Oh, shoot. You're bored, aren't you? Ugh," Wilbur groaned, lashing his tail in frustration. "Man, I knew I should've brought a deck of cards. Forgive me."

"Um... wouldn't they get wet anyway?" I asked.

"For the love of- of course they would!" He smacked his head. "Stupid!" He hissed to himself. "Why must you be so good at this _thinking_ thing?"

"To balance out your... youness."

"You trying to pick a fight?" He smirked.

"Anytime, anywhere, _monkey_."

" _Monkey!_ Ooohoho, now _them_ be some _fighting words!_ " He exclaimed. "Come on, fight me, bruh!"

"Whoa, hey hey, easy now fur-face," I told him, grabbing onto his shoulders to keep him down.

"Fur-face? Who you callin' fur-face, Mr. Fuzzykins?"

"We're not fuzzy!" I protested. "We're _furry_! Get it right!"

He laughed. "Ooh, found your button. Sorry, Mr. _Furry_ kins."

"Better," I grumbled. "So, where's the next island?"

"Not too far from here," he answered. "See! Just over there!" He pointed randomly into the middle of the sea.

"We don't see-"

" _MADE YOU LOOK!"_ He laughed. "Just kidding, it's over there." He pointed the opposite direction, where an island was clearly becoming visible on the horizon. We shot a glare at him, but he just shrugged it off with a grin and hurried the boat towards it. "Ooh this is going to be fun we're going to pick grass and twigs and wear hats and look fabulous and OH MY GOD A HAT!" He shouted suddenly. "YOU NEED A- oh wait, you're already wearing a hat. Nevermind, forget I said anything." He ended innocently.

We were completely unable to find words, so we just stayed silent until we hit the island. "Now what?" I asked.

"I'm not sure about you, but I'm hung- OH MY GOSH WHAT IS THAT?" He exclaimed, pointing behind us.

"What? We don't see anyth-" I stopped, turning around to find the empty beach where Wilbur was just seconds ago. "Um... Wilbur?"

No reply.

"Wilbur? Um... hey... where'd you go?"

" _Surprise!"_ He suddenly appeared out of nowhere, clinging on to my shoulders like a bug. "Did you see me? Did ya', huh? Did ya', huh? Did ya'?"

"No, Wilbur," I sighed.

"Come on!" He motioned us over to the boat with his tail.

"Is it fixed?"

"Pfft, of course! Come on! We're almost at the volcano!" He wrapped his tail around our wrist again, pulling us towards the raft. "Hurry up!"

He shoved us roughly onto the raft and jumped on himself, paddling back out into the open water. It was just turning dusk when a glowing, ominous structure loomed in the distance. "What's that?" I asked.

" _That,_ my friend, is the _volcano!_ Neat, isn't it? We're going to climb to the top!" He cheered.

We blinked, images of falling down into it played in our head.

"Don't worry! You won't fall!" He assured us, as though reading our thoughts.

Nodding, we followed his lead as he brought the raft to the base of the volcano and began to scale it. It wasn't hard, actually, since there were many cracks filled with long-ago cooled obsidian for foot holds. Once we got to the top, we looked out over the ocean. "Man! What a view!" I exclaimed.

"I know, right? And look down there!" He motioned towards the inside of the volcano, and we could peek down to see a beautiful assortment of glowing rocks and lava.

"Wow! How often do you come here?"

"Not too often, but when I do, boy, is it worth it!" Suddenly, his tone dropped, and he muttered something.

"What?" I asked.

"P-please, forgive me for this."

"For what?"

"I s-swear. I really don't want to do this. B-but! I have to, for my home. F-for Maxwell."

We bit our lip. "W-what?"

"For Maxwell!" He shouted, wrapping his tail around our ankle and pulling sharply, causing us to stumble. "Please, no hard feelings!"

We felt the rock crumble under one foot and for a moment, we hung precariously over the edge before Wilbur gave a final shove and we felt ourself falling over the edge, coming to a searing halt as we made contact with the hot coal covered floor. _He betrayed us!_ I thought wretchedly. _No, he was never on our side..._ slowly, our thoughts slowed and finally, we escaped the heat by falling into unconsciousness.


	58. Chapter 58 Tiger Shark

___**Webber's POV**_

 __We felt grass beneath our skin. Soft, smooth, _cool_ grass. Were we alive? Slowly, we opened our eyes to let in a little light, sighing in relief to see the sky gray with clouds, the light far from blinding. What did startle us, however, was the beast standing just inches away. Slamming our eyes shut again, we hoped with all our heart that it was a dream.

Then it spoke, and we understood it.

"This, my sharkittens, is a spider," it purred. Its voice was feminine and… almost motherly. "And you know what we do when spiders are brought as tribute?"

"We kill them!" chirped a different voice, belonging to someone much younger than her.

"I'm hungry!" A third voice complained.

"Now, now, Smokey," the beast rumbled. "All in good time."

Finally mustering the courage, we opened our eyes fully to examine the beasts. There were five in total. _We're outnumbered_ , I thought hopelessly. And _out sized…_ the majority of them were small, about the size of Popsicle, with orange fur parted by stripes of darker fur. They had the wide, innocent eyes of baby kittens, with short pointed ears, but rows upon rows of sharp, pearly white teeth. _Just like a shark's…_ I thought. _Sharkittens…_

The last one, however, won the title of scariest beast on the island. She was… well, massive for lack of better terms, about the same size as the Moose/Goose, which was breathtaking enough. It didn't help that she too had several rows of teeth, each sharper than the last, with wide cat-eyes and wide-spaced, pricked ears. With some further examination, we also noted she had the fin like a shark, with striped orange fur similar to the sharkittens.

"Hey! This one's alive!" squealed one of the sharkittens, a female. "Hi!" She greeted. "My name's Callie!"

"I'm Smokey!" greeted the one who complained of hunger earlier.

"My name's Hunter!" purred another, who had a belly bulging with the fatness of a pampered house-cat.

"And I'm Shadow," said the last, the most serious of the four.

"The big scary one is our mom!" Smokey meowed. "Her name is Tiger Lily!"

Tiger Lily sighed heavily. "You four! You are not supposed to _engage conversation with your hunting practice!_ "

But they didn't listen. "Hey! Can you play with us?" Callie begged.

"We're sorry, kitties," I said formally. "We really, _truly_ would, but we believe that your mother would like to eat us now."

"What are you doing, spider?" the shark growled.

"Moooooooom! Can you _please_ let us play with him before we have to kill him?" Hunter begged.

She sighed again. "Well, I suppose…" she cut off as all four animals tackled us to the ground in a heap of purrs and licks. We were used to Popsicle doing something similar, but four hound-sized cats was enough to practically suffocate us, and we soon had to push them off.

"Look, we know we're fun to play with and all," I said, attempting to get to my feet, but Tiger Lily was at our side at an instant, glaring down and, with a hiss, pushed us back down. "but… we'd _really_ not prefer to become dinner. If… that's…. okay…"

She let out a puff of air. "No," she growled. "You may as well play with them, take advantage of your last sunrise, but then, tonight, you'll be no more."

"Ooookkkaaaaay, got it," I gave a weak thumbs-up. Yay, we came all this way, fighting four giants and the Ancient Guardian, somehow surviving falling into a volcano, to be eaten by a giant cat/shark mix and her kittens. Just how I always imagined we would die! "Though, if I may ask a question," she gave a grunt of agreement, "how come you guys are speaking spider and not some other… cat… shark… language?"

"Simple," she rumbled. "Spiders used to be the biggest species on this island, until a hurricane appeared and wiped almost all of them out. We will always learn the language of the biggest population, and because it used to be spider, I still remember it, and speak in its tongue, for its how I grew up," She motioned towards the four sharkittens. "and how I wish for my sharkittens to grow up."

"Ah, neat."

"Now, go play, and be ready for dinner." Almost as though her words were a signal, we were soon covered head-to-toe once more in writhing sharkittens. Their fur was smooth and soft, and, especially once they got tired enough to practically collapse on us, we almost fell asleep several times, if it wasn't for the threat of being dinner hanging over our head… again. We didn't even think about the fact that this was not the first time we were becoming dinner.

"Um, hey, Tiger Lily, yeah, we might want to warn you," I started after a few hours of practically being a jungle gym. "Just so you know, several creatures have tried eating us, and it _never_ ends out pretty well."

"What do you mean by this, tiny spider?" She growled. Apparently she was laying only a few feet away.

"Um, so yeah. We were actually a human, but then this spider tried to eat us, aaaaaaaannd, that didn't end well, as you can tell."

She lashed her stumpy tail. "And am I supposed to believe this?"

"Naw, only if you want," I waved it off. "but I thought I would at least warn you."

She let out a strange growl, as though suddenly unsure. "You have no idea what kind of excuses some animals come up with to not get eaten, but this is probably the weirdest."

"We can give you stranger excuses if you _don't eat us_."

"Um, no, sorry."

"It was worth a try, wasn't it?" I sighed. "Okay, what can we do that will stop you from eating us?"

"You can play with us more!" Hunter purred.

"You four, shoo," Tiger Lily pushed her kits away with her front paws. "Now, tell me, spider," she pushed her face into our's. "What in your life is enough to keep you alive? Friends? Family? Tell me."

"Friends," I answered honestly.

"Tell me, spider," I could smell her rancid breath. "who?"

"What?"

"Who? Who is enough to keep you alive?"

"Lots of people," I sighed. "D-do you understand this?"

She wrapped her tail around her paws, sitting. "I never realized spiders can do this," she said. "but, I'm sorry. Every creature has something to lose. Do you see now what I have to lose?" She turned to look at the four sharkittens, who were now a pile of orange fluff.

We were silent.

She let out a breath. "Make sure you're ready for dinner. It won't be long now."


	59. Chapter 59 Reappearance

_**-Charlie's POV**_

 __She slunk through the darkness, her footsteps completely silent, her lips sealed. Maxwell had a special mission today, and she was planning on doing exactly what he asked. It was an easy enough mission... if she didn't have to deal with a _very_ whiny prisoner, who was almost bound to her with an invisible chain so he couldn't escape.

"WHAT ARE WE DOING ANYWAY?"

"Would you _shut up already_?"

"NOT UNTIL YOU TELL ME WHAT WE'RE DOING."

"You, are being annoying, I, am doing something that is _none of your business_."

"THAT DOESN'T HELP."

She growled, but didn't give him the satisfaction of replying. _Now, where did he say the spider would be...?_ Ah ha! She was walking over the ocean, not even feeling the spray of the water. But he hung back.

"YEAH, WATER AND I DON'T GO TOGETHER WELL."

Stomping back to him, she grabbed him by the 'ear', at least, that's what she assumed they were, and yanked him over the same border, sighing when he stared in shock as the water passed right through him.

"OKAY, IF YOU WANNA BE LIKE THAT. CAN YOU AT LEAST TELL ME WHERE WE ARE AND WHY WE ARE APPARENTLY NOT SOLID?" 

She groaned. "You idiot, have you not found out yet?"

"WOULD I BE ASKING IF I HAVE?"

"You are in what is called a 'Pocket Dimension', a fold between two worlds, the world of Maxwell's domain and and your native world," she explained. "Happy now?"

"BUT WHY?"

"Because we need to be here for a mission I'm supposed to conduct."

"AND THAT IS...?"

"Maxwell isn't able to find the spider. So, he sent me here to find him," she continued at a faster pace. "And you're going to help me find him."

"MAKE ME."

"Is that a challenge?" Instead of being alarmed or shocked, she simply turned back and gave him a bored glance. "You can try, but I've never lost."

"YOU'RE WRONG. YOU'RE LOSING RIGHT NOW. YOU ARE TOO BUSY HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH ME TO ACTUALLY CONTINUE WITH THE MISSION."

With another growl, she set off even faster than before. For a moment, she felt as though she was pushing against a wall, and then her prisoner stumbled and started to be dragged out across the ocean. He was stubborn as a mule, as she hated every second of this.

 _I can't wait 'till Maxwell finally gets what he wants_ , she thought. _And then maybe he will let me go free!_

 _ **…? POV**_

 __I felt as though I had no mind left. Everything was always cold, callous, and impossible to read. Not even the voices that used to plague my mind were left, and even if they were, they refused to ever speak to me anymore. _What's the point?_ Nobody was left, nothing was left except for the darkness and Charlie. Charlie was the only person who I could speak to anymore, and she never listened to me unless she was telling me off for talking too much. _What is this 'mission', she's talking about?_ I wondered, though deep in my empty, desolate mind, I knew exactly what she was doing. _She's going to kill him, and it's going to be my fault, because I can't stop her... or can I...?_

Once again, I stopped completely, and she turned to glare at me before continuing to drag me across. I knew it didn't do much, but it did something _Run! Get out of here! Before she comes!_ I knew he couldn't hear me, and I knew he was doomed, as was I. Finally gathering up the courage, I leaped at her, forcing her to the barrier of the ocean that we walked on. She let out an echoing cry of shock, then before I knew it, I was standing feet away from her, a deep gash along my thigh.

"Didn't I tell you I always win?" She chuckled. "Come on."

Reluctantly, I followed her again. _It's impossible to beat her!_ I felt my chest ache. Even though I knew very well I had no heart to feel, I must've had something similar because I could feel the pain of grief. My head low, I silently followed her again. After about an hour of walking, she turned to look at me. "Wow, you're awfully quiet... for once."

"GEE, THANKS. DO YOU WANT ME TO TALK? I MEAN, JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING I SAY YOU GET MAD AT ME JUST FOR SPEAKING."

This earned me a hefty cuff around the head. "Silence!" She hissed.

"YOU TALKED TO ME!" I protested.

She cuffed me again, harder this time. "Look. Look but don't speak." She pointed out over the endless sea. "Do you see that? That's land. That's where we're going."

I squinted. "IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE LAND. WHAT ABOUT THE CLIFFS?"

"Do you doubt me?"

I finally just shut my mouth and went on without another noise, except a sigh. _I'm sorry. I can't stop her. It's up to you, kid. Good luck._

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"You may as well play with them, take advantage of your last sunrise, but then, tonight, you'll be no more." We blinked up at Tiger Lily as she gave us these parting words, then turned to slip back into the ocean. It was the fourth time she said that, four days in a row we were given this threat, four nights we still got to watch the sunrise with Smokey and Hunter, who never seemed to sleep. Callie and Smokey seemed to be more sleep now, pay attention to the world later.

"Come on!" Smokey hissed impatiently. "Tell us a story!"

"About what?" I asked, smiling.

"Tell us about the mainland!" Hunter begged.

"What about the mainland?"

"Anything!" Callie bounced up and down. "Something cool!"

"How about something that happened to us here?" I suggested. Suddenly, three pairs of eyes were in a line, begging for the tale. We settled down into the sand. "Well, when we first got here-" We found ourself telling the story of Wilbur and his betrayal, for the first time actually happy to revisit an odd memory such as that.

"Wow!" Smokey breathed. "I can't believe you survived falling into a volcano!"

"What about that one thing you mentioned the other day, about that robot!" Callie suggested.

We felt our throat tighten. "W-what about him?" I choked, but knew exactly what our mind was preparing to explain.

"Anything!" she purred.

"Okay," I sighed after a few moments. "So, you see, WX- that was his name, see?- well, he used to hate us. In fact, we hated each other. The other person, Wilson, he couldn't leave us alone with each other, always at each other's throats. Then, one day, something dark happened in Wilson, and he tried to hurt us!" The three leaned in, eyes wide. "But WX stopped him, and saved us! But, not before he gave us this-" we parted our chest fur to reveal the scar still visible, "this-" we lifted our chin slightly to show the neck scar, "and this-" lastly, we motioned to our blind eye. "When we woke the next morning, he had actually taken care of us all night, making sure we were okay. After that, we started to become closer. But, a long time ago, we were told by an evil man named Maxwell to collect five artifacts. The eye of the deerclops, a mighty beast that roamed in the winter, the egg of the Moose, or Goose, which roamed in the spring, the fur of the Bearger, which thrived in the fall, the tooth of the Dragonfly, who was the ruler of summer, and the horn of the Ancient Guardian, a ferocious monster that lived far underground. All we had to do was get the horn, so we went down into the ruins of a mighty civilization." Our words faltered as we recalled living among them.

"Please go on!" Hunter exclaimed.

Chuckling, we went on. "When we got down there, we found and fought him. He was powerful, so powerful..." we broke off again, staring into the distance, but managed to drag ourself back into the present. "When we were at our weakest, the Ancient Guardian tried to attack us, but WX got in the way, and saved us yet again, but this time... payed with his life." We blinked away tears. "Then, the Ancient Guardian told us that fighting those monsters, collecting those items... we didn't have to do any of it. Maxwell had lied, and killed our best friend with it." Three furry bodies pressed against us. "And now..." we drew in a shaky breath. "Now we have no hope of escaping."

"Why would you want to?" Smokey squeaked, alarmed.

"This isn't our home, little sharkitten," I whispered.

Just then, we heard splashing and Tiger Lily dragged herself back onto shore, carrying something small and brown in her jaws. Looking at it closely, we realized it was quivering. It was still alive, just like us... She bent down and dumped it by the shore, and the second it's paws touched the ground, it raced off, tail lashing, papyrus flipping in the wind... _oh no, you are_ joking.

"Get off! Yeah! I wouldn't eat me if I were you! We- uh- are chewy! Ew. _I_ definitely wouldn't want to eat me! And I eat a lot of things." He spat in the dust. "and we're, er, furry! Yeah! You would be picking fur out of your teeth all afternoon!"

"Oh Lord," I sighed.

"Do you know him?" Tiger Lily asked, her fur smelling strongly of salt.

"Too well."

"Can we... still eat him...?"

"Please do," I growled.

At that same moment, his gaze landed on us, and he brightened. "Webber! Hey pal! You're alive! How... convenient! Lend an old chum a hand?"

We drew ourself to our full height. "No."

"Friend? Chump? Pal? Brother? Amigo? Come on! It's me! Wilbur!"

"Kill him," I told them without remorse.

"Yikes!" Wilbur flipped around, eyes wide, only to run straight into Tiger Lily, who dropped onto all fours with a snarl. Wilbur was about to be torn to shreds, and I didn't care at all.


	60. Chapter 60 Uncomfortably Numb

_**Webber's POV  
**_

 __We stood, waiting, numb to all emotion, for Tiger Lily to attack. It was the strangest feeling ever, but we could not even manage a hint of guilt. It was like waiting for dinner to be finished cooking, but when you knew that what was being cooked when being cooked the wrong way. Seeing the monkey at the mercy of such a large beast, it filled us with something more like a cold interest.

"C-come on! P-please! I d-d-didn't do anything wrong! M-Maxwell would've k-killed us all anyw-way. I w-was just d-doing what I needed to t-to save this island chain!" Wilbur whimpered, shaking violently. He was terrified. And yet, we still didn't care.

"What are you waiting for? You asked for this, Wilbur. You betrayed us. You betrayed _me_."

"W-Webber, you d-don't think that, d-do you? Think! W-would you're friends expect you to save me?" His voice dropped so that even with my powerful hearing, I could barely hear his words. "Would WX expect you to save me?"

I blinked, feeling another cold wave of rage pass over me. "Leave them out of this!" I hissed. "You betrayed me! You left me to die! Why should I do anything different for you?"

Tiger Lily didn't move, but I saw her ear twitch, as though paying close attention to the conversation but not making a move in case of... _of what?_

"Because I was doing it to save you!" He cried. "I knew you would survive! Maxwell has been trying to kill you forever! I lied to him. I told him I killed you. I purposely dropped you into the shortest drop, the coolest area. I knew you would survive because not even Maxwell could kill you!" His cheeks were wet. _Can monkeys cry?_

"You didn't have to drop me down a volcano to prove it! You could've done anything else!"

He met my gaze, his eyes as cold as ice. "What happened to you? Who are you?"

 _"I told you I would break through!"_ A triumphant voice echoed in my ear. _**My voice.**_

 __A trembling body pressed against my flank, and I looked down to see Smokey quivering by my side. "W-what are you doing, W-Webber? Y-you're not you."

Against my will, I heard words come from my mouth. "What are you waiting for? _**Kill him**_!"

Wilbur attempted to take a step towards me, but Tiger Lily blocked him, growling. Instead, it was I who moved towards him, though once again, against my will. Once I got close enough to touch him, my hands curled into fists. My hand rose as though about to strike, then, I felt myself break and I fell towards him, my body heaving with dry sobs. "I don't want this!" I cried.

"Then why are you doing this?" He whispered.

"I don't know..." I whimpered.

I vaguely felt the breath of Tiger Lily on my back. "What is going on?"

"Webber... are you... okay?" Wilbur asked.

"I-I think so."

"Well in that case, that's great. Because I have a few stern words to share with you! First of all, what kind of friend just sits and watches as another is about to be eaten by a giant cat? And even worse, you were telling them to _kill and eat me!_ " He reached out and slapped our wrist gently. "You need to learn how to be a friend, mister!"

A growl rumbled in Tiger Lily's throat. "It's okay," I told her. "He's fine." I felt her pawsteps as she walked away, rounding up her sharkittens with a trilling noise, like a bird call.

"But really dude, what the heck got in to you?"

We blinked, but every moment, the memory got fainter and fainter. "We don't know. We really don't know. We were so... so numb..."

"Perhaps it's because of your robot friend!" Hunter suggested, bouncing up next to us.

Wilbur nodded. "It's possible. You tried to build a mental wall to block out the grief, so it makes you numb when you try to feel grief or guilt."

We gently patted him on the head. "We didn't know a _monkey_ could say big words like 'mental'."

His eyes widened. "You are _so_ lucky that you are being a mental case right now or I would be very mad at you." He lashed his tail, whipping our leg with the very tip of it.

"Well, we're very mad at you." There were very few people who could make us laugh when we were angry or sad, but his humor was contagious even to us.

"Well, how about this. Let's make a deal, shall we? I know a way to... to get you back to the mainland."

"And what's the cost?" I asked suspiciously.

He glanced up at Tiger Lily, who was staring at him hungrily. "Get that oversized feline off my very-ape-like-not-monkey tail?"

We thought for a few moments. We _did_ choose to leave, but after this, we were desperate to get back to something more normal. "But... what about _you_? What will Maxwell do to you when he finds out we're not dead?"

"Hey, leave that to me. I've caused you enough trouble. Maxwell can be a jerk, but I've lived longer than you, _kid._ I'm not stupid. I know how to survive." He looked around at the sandy shore. "This island chain wasn't always almost completely submerged in water, you know."

We shivered. We knew Maxwell was cruel, but to almost completely sink an island?

"It's a machine called the 'Seaworthy'. It is the only way back to the mainland from here," he went on.

"Okay, hold that thought," we turned to Tiger Lily, who, seeing us look at her, stood up. "Hey, Tiger Lily. It's time for us to go."

For a moment, we thought her eyes flashed with sadness, but she gave her large grin and dropped to all fours. "I knew this day was coming soon. Fare thee well, spider."

We dipped our head. "Fare thee well, Tiger Lily," we grinned.


	61. Chapter 61 Seaworthy

_**Webber's POV**_

 __For once, Wilbur seemed subdued. He walked slowly with his tail trailing in the dust. We knew he didn't want to show us the way out, but he promised, and he was apparently set on doing exactly what he promised this time. Our head hurt, and the crashing noise of the waves weren't helping. _What came over us? Was that Webber?_

Despite the fact we almost expected to hear him once more, our mind remained clear, other than the headache, instead of turning fuzzy like when he was trying to break through. "Hey, Wilbur?" We started. "Are you... okay?"

He sighed. "Not looking forward to being alone again."

"At least you have your 'royal subjects'," I joked.

"Oh, Webber, they're terrible!" His voice rose to a whine. "No one _ever_ respects me for how awesome I am! Most of them laugh when I try to point out who the boss is here! You were the closest to a friend I had!"

"Why don't you come with us?" I offered.

"I can't," he rasped. "I _have_ to stay here. I need to prepare the locals for when Maxwell attacks." He sighed again. "We'll have to get used to the islands becoming another couple of yards underwater. And you know-" he kicked at some sand on the shore. "this isn't sand. It's old ash."

We blinked, then looked at it closer. It was true. Some of it might have been actual sand, but plenty of grayish ash was mixed in to the tan grains. We bent down and grabbed a handful of it, instantly regretting it as it stuck to our fur. "Why?"

"When Maxwell doesn't get what he wants, he makes volcanoes erupt. The bottom of the ocean here is all ash, that's why the levels rise. Piles of ash go down for miles. They need to be prepared," he repeated. "They won't make it unless they are. The only other creature here that has lived through his attacks is the tiger shark, what's her name? Tiger Lily?"

"Are you two the oldest creatures here?"

He looked away, nodding.

"And that's why you're the king? Does that mean she's the queen?"

" _Oh my gosh Webber you are so freaky!_ " He exclaimed.

"We didn't mean it like that!" I said quickly. "Why did you take it like that?"

"It sounded like you meant it like that!" He continued walking. "So, when you get back, what are you going to do?"

"First off, we're going to find our friends," I told him.

"I know, then what, though?"

"Well, we plan on telling off Maxwell and getting out of this dump. Hopefully, we can get Maxwell off your totally-ape-like tail before he dumps another mile of ash and obsidian on this place."

"Oh! That reminds me!" He shouted suddenly. "Wait here!" And in a moment, he was gone in a cloud of dust.

"But-" I cut off, knowing very well he was out of earshot.

We bent down to examine the sand-ash, wondering how we didn't smell the old firey smell before. After about fifteen minutes of waiting, we heard him scampering back over the sand, holding two objects in his front paws. One was a spear with a strange head, which looked like it was made of frozen lava. The other was a necklace with a white chain, a large, yellow gem framed in the center of it.

"I guess it's kind of a go-away present," he said shyly, handing us the two objects. "I found them in a treasure chest. It's an obsidian spear," he pointed to the spear we examined.

"These are so cool!" I breathed. The spear was hot to the touch, though only enough to be burnt by it if you pressed against the head.

"I know you didn't like me very much, given your performance last chapter, but that doesn't mean I'll let you forget about me that easily! By the way, you called them 'cool', you've spent too much time around me, haven't you?"

"We've lived with a group of cats for the past four or five days. How would we get enough time to pick up calling stuff 'cool' from you?"

"Well you see, I am such an awesome _ape_ , that even when we were apart, you couldn't stop thinking about me!" He laughed. "And saying the word 'cool' reminded you of me!"

"Hmm, I don't even recall hearing you say 'cool' once."

"Well yeah! Well... you stink! Yeah!" he gave another chuckle. "That reminds me, I don't recall you speaking in singular before, and that's what you did yesterday! Why _do_ you speak in plural, anyway?"

Quickly checking my mind again, and finding it still clear, I bent down to face him directly. "Okay, look, a lot of people don't know this-" _Actually, no one knows now. The only person who knew... no, I can't think about that now._ "but, well, as you may know, this is _not_ what I actually look like. My mind is sort of split in two. One half is... well, the spider, and the other half- the half that's speaking to you- is me. Usually, I think myself as being two, the spider and myself, but sometimes, I'll break from his control or visa versa."

"And that's when you speak as one?" he guessed.

"Yeah. When... that happened... yesterday, that wasn't me..."

"That was _him_."

"Exactly."

He visibly relaxed. "So that _wasn't_ you," he breathed.

"No."

He closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them again he turned, his totally-ape-like tail waving. "Seaworthy may not be going anywhere but we'd better hurry before nightfall. You comin'?"

"Yeah yeah, we're coming," I said with a sigh.

His tail fell for a second in disappointment, as though unhappy with the 'we' thing, but a moment later it shot back up. "Well, hurry up!" He exclaimed, running ahead.

We sighed, then started jogging up to him.

"Man! Could you be any slower?"

"Hey! If we went any faster _you'd_ be half a mile behind us by now!" 

"Ohohoho, I get it! You just don't want to get lost, and you need my awesomeness to help you find the Seaworthy!" He chuckled.

"What did you think?" I thwacked him across the head. "You dimwit."

"I know you are but what am I?" He challenged.

"You cheeky monkey!" I exclaimed. He dodged another blow to the head.

"Come on," he sighed, instantly forgetting his gladness. "It's getting late. It's just around the corner."

Wordlessly, we followed him up a hill and into a small jungle. In the distance, we spotted what looked like an old novelty ride. "Is that it?" I whispered once we were near it.

"Yeah," he sighed again. "I guess this is it, huh?"

"Yeah, 'guess so. Is it time to say goodbye?"

"Mhmm. It'll be lonely, but, hey, I guess I've got an entire island chain to care for. We've both got our jobs to do. Ready? When you are, just hop on."

"And then what?"

"You'll be home," he whispered.

We closed our eyes for a moment, then climbed aboard the toy ship.


	62. Chapter 62 Long-Buried Memories

_**Webber's POV**_

 __It was a memory. We were dreaming.

 _We let out a contented sigh, looking over the muddy land. It rained often, but today was a short spell of dry weather. We smelled the wet air of more to come, however. Beside us lay Popsicle, who slept peacefully, his normally snowy-white and blue pelt brown and clotted with mud. "Just because you're the only one fine with rain doesn't mean you should relax when it stops!" Wilson protested. We ignored him, more interested in watching WX turning around and around, unsure of what to do since he didn't have to bother with the rain. We let out a snicker, and Wilson frowned._

 _"Come on! Let us relax for a while, kill joy!" I laughed._

 _He turned to WX. "What about you? Why aren't_ you _doing anything?"_

 _He blinked a few times, finally stopping his circling. "UM, LIKE WHAT?"_

 _"Oh, I don't know, maybe... getting wood? Battle training? Hunting?_ Dragonfly? _Ring a bell?"_

 _"We have plenty of wood," I pointed out._

 _"WE'VE BEEN BATTLE TRAINING ALL SEASON!" WX sighed._

 _"And we have enough food, and the Dragonfly doesn't come until Summer," Wilson finished, echoing WX's sigh. "But that doesn't mean you two can sit around and be lazy!"_

 _We were both silent, staring at him for a few minutes. "Then what does?" I asked tentatively. He let out a long-drawn-out groan of annoyance, turning on his heels and stalking away. "Though so," I snickered again._

 _"I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW YOU DEAL WITH HIM. HE ANNOYS ME TO NO END."_

 _"He puts us to sleep," I told him very seriously. "He's the one who helps us with insomnia. That's why we keep him around."_

 _We remembered thinking, this is how it should always be, just Wilson, WX, and I, stuck together on an island_ and _Will we meet anyone else here?_ One thought, however, that did not cross our mind then. Well, several, actually. _We're going to make friends with a monkey_ and _WX is going to die_ and _We're not the only ones. We were so lost in thought, when we finally snapped out of it, WX was giving us a very confused look. "I THINK I KNOW WHO THE HEAVY THINKER IS," he informed us. He fixed us with that eyeless stare for a few more seconds before adding, "YOU DIDN'T USED TO BE LIKE THAT. WHAT HAPPENED?"  
_

 _Even though his tone was light-hearted... for him... it hit a nerve on us. Well, we kind of had this vision about killing you, oh! And Wilson was there too, but he was also dead, courtesy of us also, and not to mention... a lot of things. We learned to trust our visions, though at that time, we didn't. It was so simple. We all had one goal: Survive. Nothing else. But then... what happened? When did it change? Maybe when our mind began splitting? When WX died? When_ Wilson _died, even? We couldn't say anything about the dream, especially since at that time we thought is was (or wanted it to be) just that. A dream. Nothing special._

 _He let out a strange noise that sounded much like someone clearing their throat. "EHEM, BUT I WAS KIND OF TALKING TO YOU. THAT WASN'T AN INVITE TO START THINKING AGAIN."_

 _What were we supposed to tell him? We decided on nothing. "Nothing 'happened'," I muttered hotly. "people change, s'all."_

People change. We smiled. Not just people, but sometimes... other beings. Say, a being who was made to hate everyone better than him ended up giving his life for a spider? Suddenly, as fast as the memory came to us, it started to fade, until we found ourself waking up. It was bittersweet. We wanted to be back on the mainland, and we recognized the meadow as the one we first woke in, but the dream reminded us about everything we failed on. _We never had to fight any of the monsters!_ I thought fiercely. _And not only did one kill Wilson, but WX too._

 _The difference is Wilson came back._

Suddenly, a half-buried memory surged in our mind, and we blinked. _Was there another way to escape...?_ It was like trying to catch a falling feather. Every time you reached for it, it just danced out of your reach, but finally we forced ourself to grasp it until it came loose, dragging a mountain of memories with it. _How we got here... it was a portal, wasn't it? Aren't portals two-way?_ We felt our heart pounding with excitement. _Maxwell's Door! It took us to this island! Surely it could get us out!_

But where would we get the tools to build another Maxwell's Door? We tried to contain the surge of emotions bubbling up inside of us. At this moment, we were convinced that if we had the chance, we would take the Nightmare Throne right now and save our friends the suffering. Would rebuilding Maxwell's Door take us to Maxwell's domain. Or better...

Would it take us home?

One thing we had never told anyone. Not Wilson, not Nick, not even WX. We were, in fact, native to this world. So when we all got home, we wouldn't be with any of them. We lived somewhere in this world, though certainly not as twisted as this area. We figured this island, the mainland, was in some sort of magical flux that made it have certain monsters not on our land. The same flux the Ruins were in. In fact, a magical flux would explain everything. From the beefalo, which were not on our land, to the Night Monster, who did not roam our land. We never really thought about our future until then. If we didn't get stuck on the Nightmare Throne, two questions came to mind. 1: Where would we be? 2: Who would be on the Nightmare Throne? We stood up, slowly, considering our options.

In the distance, we heard a faint rumble that could easily have been thunder, but we didn't pay attention to it until it suddenly came much closer, accompanied by the sound of feet against leaves. It wasn't thunder, it was growling. That's when an ice-cold body suddenly slammed into us at full force and we fell to the ground as the beast simply sat on our back, cleaning its fur with strange snuffling noises. Noises we recognized. Finally, we managed to squirm out from under the ice hound and it instantly turned, its eyes blazing and back arched like a cat's. Then, it's eyes softened with recognition, and it leaped at us again, though this time in a more affectionate manner, nuzzling our hand and licking our face. "Yep," I laughed. "It's good to be home, buddy, it's good to be home."


	63. ERROR 63: FILE NAME NOT FOUND

_**?(* )$*^*) ?{7) &_-=`~ 8('s POV?**_

I remember it very clearly. It was just what seemed like a completely normal day of being dead, strapped by an invisible rope to the Nightmare Servant, as she was officially called, or Charlie. I must hurry and tell you! She might overhear us! I know who you are, and I'm trying to break through, but it is harder than it seems. But, if I am finished for good, or if I forget... I need _someone_ to know my story! You see, I remember terribly well the, well, nightmares I have faced. My chest ached with grief. Still, it had been so long since I had been able to see any of my friends. I no longer held much faith for the future. Charlie noticed my behavior, and she made sure to give me a thrashing for that. But one day, her beatings ceased to work on me, and finally, she gave up. In fact, she even went so far as to ask me why I was asking like that.

"What's wrong with you?" She demanded. "You've been moping around like a kid with his candy stolen." Before I could answer, not that I was going to, she seemed to understand. "Oh don't tell me- you pathetic whelp!" She snarled. "You'll never see them again, so just give it up!"

"OF COURSE," I answered smoothly. "I WAS JUST CONSIDERING... PICKING UP AN ITEM I HAD DROPPED."

"And would this 'item' get you to stop being a soppy mess?" She rolled her eyes.

"PERHAPS," I gave her a crooked smile, an idea blossoming in my head.

"And where is this 'item'?"

"DEEP IN THE CAVES," I replied, my mind racing. "WHERE I WAS KILLED."

She groaned. "I am _not_ going down into that freezing hole. Denied."

"ISN'T THERE A WAY YOU CAN UNTETHER ME?"

She eyed me for a second. "Let's go see, shall we?" Her eyes flashed. "Come on you whiny tin can."

I swallowed back a defiant retort, knowing that I was one step closer to getting what I wanted, and followed her through the bare pocket dimension until somehow we ended up in Maxwell's chamber. _Epilogue._ I thought. _Checkmate. Oh please tell me that Wilson's book has information about this place and how to get here. Maxwell's door, you guys! The Teleportato, then! Please, tell me someone out there can hear me!_ But nobody came. _Like I expected someone to,_ I thought bitterly.

"Maxwell!" Charlie said in her best I'm-super-freaky-and-commanding voice. "Untether my prisoner from me at once!"

Maxwell looked asleep upon her entrance, but his eyes blinked open after her demand. "And why should I?" He asked crossly, as though angry at her for waking him up.

"There is this item he plans to reclaim," she explained, lowering her gaze. "He promised it will make him easier to... work with."

 _Didn't. I said it would stop me from being a 'soppy mess'. Not that it would make me easier to deal with._

"Fine," he said with a wave of his hand. "Off you go."

"Wait, what?" She exclaimed, shocked. "Just like that? No test, no denying, nothing?"

His eyes flashed in a way I never knew possible from him. "No," he rasped. "Let him go." I flashed her a ha-it-worked smirk. I once again didn't say anything, and simply walked away, marveling at the fact I wasn't leashed to Charlie. But of course, she cut me off.

"Wait," she told me, then disappeared from the throne room. Maxwell and I stayed in an awkward silence until she came back, carrying several dead rabbit bodies. "Your scent must stay hidden," she hissed.

"MY _SCENT?_ "

But she didn't say anything, and I didn't fight back, as she coated me in the rabbit's blood, the hot and sticky liquid not affected me like water. I just felt it oozing uncomfortably down my whole body until I was painted red and stank of death.

"Now leave," she growled after she had finished. "And if you are asked, you are the Crimson Reaper."

Even since then, I have begun to lose myself...

After I was officially dismissed by the Nightmare Servant, I headed straight for the caves, forming the picture of the hole-filled hill, and the ground beneath me changed into sparse green grass, broken at regular intervals by tracks of animals and patches of sticky mud. I knew no one could see me, even if I tried to see them. Before long, I was in the caves, and although it must have been spring outside, the caves were icy, the stalactites were dripping with icicles, some going so far down they touched the floor and were as wide as myself. I looked at some of them in amazement, especially a couple that were bigger than I, looking through it at my hand that looked distorted. It was absolutely freezing.

 _Was this a mistake?_ I wondered, then shook my head fiercely. _No! Of course not..._ But it took longer than usual to find the Ruins cave entrance, and when I did, I could hardly move. Slipping down the rope into the Ruins generated a bit of warmth in my hand, but that quickly gave away to a piercing frost, so biting that an extreme bolt of pain ran through my whole right arm. I gasped in pain, grasping it with the other hand and squeezing my 'eyes' shut, waiting for it to stop. But it didn't. I sat there for about half an hour, hoping the pain would stop, blind to almost anything but it. I didn't even realize when something furry brushed against me until two redish-pink eyes blinked up at me. I stared at her, Erika, for a few moments, wondering how she saw me.

She quickly snarled something in spider talk, and I realized that she didn't, but was looking at something on the ceiling above my head. It was another dangling depths dweller, and it quickly spun a web down from the ceiling, landing right next to me. They exchanged words for a couple of minutes, looking very serious, before they both nodded and walked off. Suddenly, as soon as I saw her scurry off, I realized exactly why my arm was killing me so much. I looked around desperately for a sharp rock. My gaze settled on a broken piece of flint, the broken end ragged and sharp. My vision tinted red and weak from pain, I managed to grab to flint and lift it up to my arm, then started to use it to saw through my own arm. It was something similar to frostbite in humans, though instead of numbness, it was, well, excruciating pain. I finally managed to split the metal that was my skin, biting back a cry of pain as it came apart, and split as many wires in my arm as I could reach with the small pointed rock.

I felt them break, and the pain in my arm eased as it grew completely numb. I wouldn't be able to ever use it again, but it was better than dealing with that horrible pain for the rest of my life- or death. I knew I didn't get all of them, but many of them, and the pain was at least bearable. I struggled back to my feet, holding my frozen arm, and began to limp towards the Ancient Guardian's chamber, just as Webber had when we came down here to fight him. I wished my teleporting ability worked everywhere and not just Maxwell's chamber! It would make my death so much easier. Trying my best to remember the route, I eventually found the labyrinth and, albeit with difficulty, the Ancient Guardian himself. He was awake and alert, his eyes fixed on the entrance I was coming in. He instantly jumped to his feet, and shouted something in the ancient language.

The strange thing is I understood him.

"Who are you!" He demanded.

I was caught between telling him the truth and what Charlie had wanted me to say. The Crimson Reaper, yeah right. Pretty cool, but not me. "MY NAME IS WX-78, GUARDIAN," I told him.

He relaxed, his hostile gaze turning into pools of sadness. "My, I didn't recognize you! Excuse my impulsiveness." He looked down, shuffling his feet in shame. "This is a rather embarrassing encounter. How are you, robot?"

"BEEN BETTER." Been alive was actually what I wanted to say. "LOOK, I HAVE SOMETHING TO GET-"

"Tell me, robot," the Guardian cut off. "what is wrong with your arm?"

"JUST SOME FROZEN WIRES," I murmured gruffly. "WHERE IS THE FLOWER?"

"What flower?" He tipped his head to one side. "Describe it to me."

"IT'S WHITE, TEARDROP SHAPED PETALS, GLOWING...?"

"Oh! You must mean the Crying Lily!" He exclaimed. "It is said to only bloom in areas of the highest emotions, mind-numbing grief and pain-numbing rage. Just look around, can you not see them?" As he said that, thousands upon thousands of glowing white flowers bloomed, showing off the beautiful details of the petals and caves, every dripping stalactite, every polished niche. "Now come to me, robot, and let me fix your arm."

"I'M FINE. I CAN FIX IT WHEN I GET BACK UP." But he was charging at me already, and painful memories of my death surged through my mind. _Please don't kill me again, please don't kill me again._ He hit my frozen arm and it ripped away from me, biting back a cry of agony. In my other hand a Crying Lily appeared like it was there the whole time. I fell to the ground, unable to drop the flower but holding it and what was left of my severed arm at once. The Guardian slowly walked to it and picked it up in his mouth, doing nothing but replacing my arm's place where it was and it and the wires fused together, and the last of the pain ebbed away. "HOW DID YOU...?"

"Ancient magic," the Ancient Guardian replied. "Ancient magic. Here, now that that's over, take this," he dropped a red necklace into my right hand.

"WHAT IS IT?"

"It is a life-giving amulet. It will not help you, I'm afraid," he sounded apologetic. "But I have a feeling you will need it in the near future. Farewell, robot!"


	64. Chapter 64 The Search For Maxwell's Door

_**A/N:**_ **Been awhile since I did a Wilson chapter, eh? Haha, unless you guys have forgotten him, since this is the first chapter in what... 10 chapters with him in it? XD poor Wilson and Nick. Maybe I've forgotten them, or else they would have been present earlier surely. Lol, enjoy.**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __I was used to Popsicle acting strange.

In fact, Popsicle's strange behavior had become his normal behavior. And recently, I must admit, even though he absolutely despised WX (I still had no clue why), he must have sensed his owner's distress, and moped around just as much as Webber had at first. That is why neither Nick nor I payed it any attention when he suddenly jumped from his sleep and let out a bark similar to his hunting bay, then charged off in the direction of the clearing we first woke up in. _We used to be three,_ I thought wretchedly. _Or four, if you count Nick. But now we're two. I wonder what happened to Webber. He just kind of... disappeared._

I certainly did not expect to see Popsicle barreling back into camp, letting out a flurry of excited yelps and surely enough, out of the brush stepped Webber. I couldn't find any words to say to him. How long had it been? Two months? I was saved from starting the conversation by him flashing a smile and announcing: "So we've been on another island for awhile! Wanna hear all about it?"

Nope. Not what I was expecting at all.

Of course, Nick perked up, and almost instantly was watching him intently. "I like stories," he answered very seriously.

So he preceded to tell about his misadventures on the island, putting extra stress on the insane behavior of Wilbur, who apparently called himself the 'Monkey King'.

He conveniently left out exactly _how_ he got there and _how_ he got back.

The bright side was that he was more alive than I had seen him in a long time. Especially since I though he was dead for awhile there. "So Wilbur starts talking about the view, right? He's like, 'This is an awesome view, isn't it?' and we were like, 'Yeah! It's pretty cool.' And then he says something about Maxwell and guess what he did? _He pushed us into the volcano!"_

 _"_ Mhmm," I answered thoughtfully, hardly listening. _Seriously, of all the lame excuses to his sudden disappearance, he comes up with this?_ I shook my head. _Only a nine-year old can come up with something like_ this.

"So then we wake up, and there's this cat-shark standing over us, talking about how she going to eat us! By the way, her name was Tiger Lily, she was really sweet. But she decided to _not_ eat us, and instead _feeds_ us when she feeds her sharkittens, Smokey, Hunter, Callie, and Shadow. All sweet cats mind you. So then-"

Scratch that. Only a nine-year old _Webber_ can come up with something like this.

Suddenly, his eyes flashed, and he whacked me in the back of the head. "Hey! Are you listening?" He demanded.

"Uh-huh, great story, Webs. But I _do_ have a question." His eyes narrowed at the name 'Webs'. "Well, actually, several. Where did you really go? Why did you leave? And why do you smell like _fish and bananas!?"_

"You don't believe us, do you?" His lower lip twitched as though he held back a snarl.

"I believe you, Webs." Nick said, grinning as the glare was passed to him. I stared at the blue-eyed warrior for a second. "What? I've had weirder experiences," he exclaimed indignantly.

" _And stop calling us Webs!"_ The spider fumed.

I turned to grab a cooked rabbit and put a piece of it in my mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "'Kay, Webs."

Bristling, he flipped around and stomped away. "We're going to the Ruins," he growled. "See you never."

"Hmm, feisty," I observed loudly. I had a feeling he wasn't going to the Ruins, just saying that because he could.

"By the way, we found a way to escape," he said, turning back to us, all signs of aggression gone. He said it so casually that for a moment I didn't even realize what he said, and only a second's thought made me notice the huge news he announced.

"A _real_ way or a _Maxwell_ way?" I questioned. Webber narrowed his eyes again, most likely remembering the failed enemy fights as an option to escape.

After all, one of those enemies killed me.

And another killed WX.

So he probably had quite a bit of rage towards Maxwell, and more than personal at that. Not that I didn't, but I came back a few days later, and my time in Maxwell's domain was something that I hardly remembered, yet it seemed to color the whole world. And of course, the fact that it was all a lie to begin with. "A _real_ way." He snorted. "You really think we'd listen to that man again?"

"What is it!" Nick demanded, his eyes glowing. _Of course_. I realized. _Nick has friends and family to get back to. I never even thought about what his life was like outside of this world._ Webber was pretty easy to read, though he often got defensive when asked about his background. WX was harder, though I was pretty sure whoever built him specifically built him to hate people. Little did he- or she- know that he practically threw away any trace of life-hating code when he spared Webber from the Ancient Guardian. But, look where that got him. Nick, on the other hand... I wasn't too sure. I know he sometimes mentioned a 'Saria' when sleep-talking, and he mentioned a Cloud that one time. He also had said something about a 'Link', 'Sora', and what sounded like 'Air' or 'Aang'. It was beyond me what any of those words- _or names?_ \- meant.

"Maxwell's Door!" Webber's exclamation jogged me from my thoughts.

"Maxwell's Door?" I echoed, clenching my hand into a fist. I still felt the scar. Strange that something as a tiny scratch can leave a scar like that. I went so far as to waste my own blood for that experiment. Without realizing, I lifted my hand and rubbed my arm, which was also laced with scars. That was one thing I _did_ remember. Charlie's cruelty, and the whip marks made sure I didn't forget that. "How would Maxwell's Door help?"

"Portals are two way, aren't they?" He pointed out.

"Most of the time," Nick replied. His eyes gleamed once more, though this time it seemed to be connected to a memory. "I once went through a couple of portals. Several times. While falling. And couldn't stop. That was great."

"What are you getting at...?"

"Don't you see? Wilson, if we can find- or rebuild- Maxwell's Door, we can get back home!"

"Home..." I couldn't keep the wistful note out of my voice. Then, I looked over Webber. "What about you? Will you ever... fit in?"

He didn't meet my gaze. "You don't understand. Don't you remember? The Ancient Guardian said-"

"I _know_ what the Ancient Guardian said! But that doesn't mean _I'll_ abandon you!"

He shook his head slowly, sadly. "You know very well Wilson Percival Higgsbury that you _can't_ stay here."

I laughed. "Oh, somehow Spider-Man knows my full name!"

I received a hearty _thwack_ across the head. "We're being serious, Wilson."

"And so am I! So how do you expect to remake the Door, hmm? Because I don't remember how to make it." _And I'm certainly not cutting myself to build the thing again!_ I thought before I could stop myself, feeling the scar all too well.

"Well... maybe we could find it?" He offered. "Like we found the... the Teleportato," he looked surprised, as though not even knowing how he knew what that was.

I raised an eyebrow. "Teleportato...?"

"The-The Wooden Thing," he stammered.

"I think we're missing the point here," Nick butt in. "How are we going to _find_ it?"

I glanced regrettably at our base. Okay, so it wasn't fantastic. No one took the time to make it nice. But it was _our's_. We _built_ it. From the ground up. And now... we have to leave it? I felt something hot brush up against one leg and cold on the other, and I looked down to see Popsicle and the lavae Pyrite by my side. The previous kneading the ground as though he wanted to take off, and the latter making squeals and squeaks as though she was trying to say something. I glanced at the spider-child in front of me. Even he seemed to be staring off in the distance, his eyes glazed and remote.

"You okay?" I asked him.

He opened his mouth as to speak, but closed it again without a word. Suddenly, without warning, he sprinted away, towards the clearing we first woke up in, Popsicle close behind him, letting out little happy puppy noises every time his paws touched the ground.

"Hey! Wait!" Nick and I, confused at his sudden dash, ran after him, but I knew very well our chanced of catching him were very slim. So we eventually gaze up and just stuck to following his tracks.

He was standing in the very center of the grassy clearing, a few sleepy midday bees buzzing around him, and a cluster of angry red bees swarming around a beefalo and stinging it from all sides nearby. In his hands he held a white necklace with a cracked yellow gem hanging off of it and a spear, it's tip radiating gentle waves of warmth I could feel even from here. The point was made of what looked like crystallized lava. "How did we forget these?" He asked himself. He didn't even seem to notice we were there.

"Hey, Webs, are you okay?"

Sure enough, he tore his gaze away from the two items to shoot me a 'are-you-kidding-us-right-now' glare.

"Just seeing if I had your attention," I smirked.

"Well you do now," he snapped.

"Look, why don't we go search for it. All three of us. Sound like a plan?"

He muttered something under his breath.

"Hmm?"

"There should be four of us..." he murmured. Then, he looked back up at me, his eyes burning with determination. "Let's go."


	65. Chapter 65 Disbelief

_**Wilson's POV**_

 __So we decided to set out the next day. I found myself enjoying the sit by the fire more than usual, knowing it'd probably be the last time we got to lounge near a fire pit, and from now on we would most likely be surviving off of torches and the occasional snatch of a campfire. However, there was a minor problem we had to face sooner or later.

How are we going to _not_ starve while _not_ surviving off of raw foods?

"Berries," Webber had suggested. "and carrots."

How would all three of us- more if you count Pyrite, Chester, Popsicle, and Zerp (Nick and I had decided to change the Glommer's name for reasons)- survive off of bits of fruits and ground veggies? Simple.

Pure stinking luck.

When the sun finally rose, which felt like hours too early to me, we started off. "Where to first?" I asked.

"Where have we not explored yet?" Nick and Webber suggested at the same time, and the latter flashed a grin in Nick's direction.

"Well..." I fumbled in my backpack, stopping to put the thing down and rummage through it. "I've been working on this quite a while... Aha!" I pulled out a thick sheet of papyrus, rolled like a scroll and tied in the middle with a particularly strong blade of grass. "You see, I found this sheet and a piece of charcoal, and decided to start on a map." I undid the knot and the map revealed itself. I had tried my best on it, small symbols indicating where certain biomes ended and others began, and proper shading to show crags, but it still looked a bit sloppy. However, Webber and Nick examined it closely and, in the end, we decided to go towards the forest beyond where we woke up at, since none of us had been there before. At one point, once we first entered the wooded area, the trees dwindled again to a small clearing, dotted with ponds.

"We were expecting worse," Webber murmured thoughtfully, looking into one of the stagnant pools.

"Isn't there something I was supposed to remember about ponds...?" I wondered aloud.

That's when a frog appeared out of nowhere and practically scared the fur off of the nine-year old. "Yikes! That was surprising!" He attempted to brush it off coolly, but it didn't help that the frog leaped at him with surprising force and threw him _into_ the pond.

I wasn't sure whether to be alarmed or laugh my head off. Could he swim? He swam in the ocean, but swimming in the ocean is like riding a paper airplane. The current determines everything, how you move, where you move, how fast you move, so for all I knew he could have just know enough to keep his head above water. Finally, I saw him come spluttering to the surface, his black fur plastered to his skin and his good eye blazing with rage. " _That little oversized reptile!"_ he bellowed angrily, climbing back onto land. I couldn't help laughing, and even harder so when he shook himself like a dog then stomped over to me to whack me across the head. "Let's see if _you_ like it!" A manic grin spread across his face, he grabbed the collar of my shirt and attempted to drag me to the pond and shove me in there himself.

"Hey hey hey!" I tried- and failed- to wrench myself from his vice grip. "We're all friends here, right?"

He pushed me into the water.

"Hey!" I spluttered. "No fair! I didn't push you in!"

"You wanted to!"

I climbed out of the water to return the head whack, and we both glared at each other for a moment before breaking out into laughter. "Okay, let's go before we're too wet and tired to keep moving."

"We're already wet and tired!" The spider-child complained.

"Webber, you know very well I _will_ drag you to keep moving."

"He would," Webber turned to Nicholas, nodding seriously.

"I can see him doing so," the blue-eyed warrior replied.

"I can and _will._ "

He laughed again, before turning away from me. "Aren't you coming?"

Shaking my head and sighing, I followed him, with Nick tailing us both.

Of course, walking through a forest and absolutely having _nothing_ to do gets you on some strange conversations. Or at least, seemingly normal conversations made strange.

"So Nick, how you getting along with a spear? It's nothing like the sword, is it?" I asked. Webber looked like he was using all of his strength to not start laughing his head off, and it took me a second to realize what he was thinking. "You're nine!" I exclaimed. "How can you be thinking like that already? I thought only teens thought like that!"

"I'm _almost_ a teen," he replied. "Nine is only one year away from _ten_."

"And teens are mostly defined by thirteen through eighteen," I pointed out. "Because they have _teen_ in the name."

"So does nineteen," he flashed.

I shot Nick a see-what-I-put-up-with look. "He has a point," he said thoughtfully.

"Okay, look. I don't care anymore. But you can have a _dirty_ mind for a nine-year old."

"Um... need we remind you... oh yeah, _I live in a spider._ We're probably more mature than either of you anyway."

"I take offense to that."

"But anyway," Nick went on. "Well um... it works well. But... I don't know... it's just... I think I prefer the sword. Like, if you swing the sword... it works, but this..."

"He prefers the sword," Webber summarized.

"Yeah, I mean, like, if you swing the spear-"

"You give your opponent a nice whack on the head," I finished. "Yeah, we had this conversation before."

"That was a nice conversation."

With an exaggerated sigh, as though _he_ were the innocent young child he _probably should be_ , Webber sat on the ground, grinning up at me. "We are staying _right here_ until you two decide to be sane."

"Sane!" I echoed. "Who's to talk about sanity, Mr. We Went Insane Really Early Into Our Adventure Here."

His grin only widened. I could hardly believe this was the same child who refused to eat anything just a few months before. It seemed that wherever he had been for two months had brought back his cheerful disposition, and quite possibly even stronger than before. _I wish he would tell us what_ really _happened._

I mean, seriously. A monkey who could speak spider called Wilbur? Did he _really_ think I'd fall for that.

Suddenly, the spider shot up, his eyes wide. "We smell salt," he hissed.

"Yes, good job, Webs! That's because we're on an island!"

"We're not going to grace that even with a glare," he growled. "Of course we can tell the difference between ocean and an animal that smells of salt!"

 _Animal that smells of salt?_

He started to walk cautiously deeper into the forest, sniffing furiously. "That'd _better_ not be who I _think_ that is!" He snarled something, and it took me a second to realize it was in spider. He said it again, more forcefully, and one of the bushed nearby shook, and a small brown creature slunk outside of it, glaring at all of us. Then his gaze met Webber's, and recognition flared between the two. He was furry and brown, his long tail lashing from side to side, and he straightened to a bipedal position, disturbing a tarnished golden crown on his head.

He snarled something in reply, to which Webber flared an angry response, making his shrink back and shrug slightly.

"Who is this?" I asked.

"This... this is Wilbur. The... the Monkey King."


	66. Chapter 66 Butting Heads

_**Wilbur's POV**_

 __"What are you _doing_ here?" Webber demanded, making me flinch. "How did you even _get_ here?"

"I swam," I replied simply.

"You _swam_?" He sniffed. "Why didn't you use the Seaworthy?"

"The sea-? Ooooooooh! I _forgot_ about that!"

"How did you forget about that? You showed it to us like, yesterday!""

"Well, two things. One, it was actually about a month ago, it takes awhile for the Seaworthy to activate. Two, _weeeeelllllll_ , you know when something is like, right in front of you but you completely miss it?"

"Not something like that!" He let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. You know what? Just fine. You're stuck with us now. 'Grats. Wilbur? Meet Wilson and Nick. Have fun understanding them Mr. I Can't Speak English."

That was something that I never thought of before. "Oooooh, you mean they don't speak spider?"

"Uh-no."

"Then how...?"

"Deal with it, or learn English. Your choice."

"Whoa wait," I stepped in his way as he was about to walk back towards his friends. "What are we doing?"

He rolled his eyes. " _We're_ trying to find the Maxwell's Door out of here. _You're_ just tagging along because you're annoying." 

"Hey!" I protested. "I thought we were on good terms when you left!"

"It's not exactly everyday when we get pushed into a volcano. You expect us to instantly forgive you? Oh, I let him go back to the mainland!" His voice changed slightly as though attempting to impersonate me. "He'll _definitely_ forget about me trying to push him into a volcano! Genius plan, self! Why thank you, Wilbur!"

"I said I was _sorry_. And I _explained_ why. But if you keep being an _ingratefull arachnid then I'll drag you back to the volcano and push you in again!_ "

He whacked me across the head with his spear. "Next time it'll be _you_ swimming in lava! Or almost being eaten by a shark." He resumed walking away, and I jumped at him and grabbed onto his leg.

"I _was_ almost eaten by Tiger Lily! She's been trying to kill me _eons_ before you arrived! Secondly, did you really swim in lava? That sounds pretty freaking cool if I do say so myself." He shook me away. "By the way, did you say that you were trying to find Maxwell's Door?" I quickly changed the subject before the spider could get mad again.

"Yeah, why?" I felt my heart beat faster, and his widened eyes revealed his suddenly excited thoughts. "You know where it is?"

"I know where that is!" I exclaimed at the same time. "I mean, I've never been to the mainland, but I talked to Maxwell in front of it..." He looked cautious. "Okay, so I don't know how to _get_ there. But I will know when we are near. Come on! You _have_ to let me help!"

"Didn't we already say you could tag along?"

"You said I was stuck with you. Is that the same?"

His reply was painfully grabbing my tail and yanking me with him.

"Hey, OW! That _hurts!_ Let _go_!"

"Almost as much as getting thrown into a volcano?" He asked dryly.

"For crying out loud, Webber! Every thing I say you bring back to that! I can say, 'Hey, look at that bird' and you'll be like 'Oh, I saw a bird when you threw me into the volcano- or threw us, I guess- or I could say, 'Could you teach me English?' and you'd say-"

"Something about learning English and getting thrown into a volcano?" He sighed. "We saw that movie too, don't worry Wilbur."

"Well you see, I'm actually _very_ worried, because I'm not too sure that you're not going to smother me in my sleep."

"We _would not_!" He shot me a half-glare, the effect of it lessened by a fierce and desperate longing, and he let his hand drop to his side, freeing my hurting tail.

 _Longing to smother me? Or... something else...? What else would anyone feel that strongly about? We used to have games about who kills who first. Gruesome, I realize as I look back, but fun nonetheless._ I was the master at that game. I felt a pinprick of guilt. I had a pretty bad reputation, didn't I? _Ha! Who cares!? NOT ME IS WHO!_ I didn't realize until then that Webber was talking to Nick and Wilson about something, and they kept shooting glances in my direction. _Probably discussing how awesome I am. In fact, I'm awesome_ and _fluent in seventeen different languages! Awesomely fluent! Yeah, that's me. Wilbur, the just plain awesome._

But of course, being the _only_ awesome one was a big job. If Webber would _stop being so stubborn_ he could easily be awesome as well. This train of thought ended abruptly, however, and the spider in question shot another, more full-on glare. I gave him a grin. "Did your friends agree I'm the awesomeness? I should've figured."

" _No,_ " he growled decisively. "We were discussing whether or not to let you tag along. We all agree you're annoying, but other than that, you can help us find the Door."

"Annoying?"

"Well, okay, they didn't say that. We said that. Because we don't trust you. And probably never will."

"I get it!" I exclaimed. "You don't like me because you are so jealous of my awesomeness, you wish you were just like me, you don't have to tell me! I can tell!"

I received another whack across the head with a spear.

"Okay, question: Will you listen to me if I know where the Door is?"

"Um... no. Probably not."

"Then what's the point of me being here for!?"

"It'd be awesome if you weren't!" He yelled.

"It's awesome that I am!"

He sighed heavily. "Come _on then_. If you want to come, then what are you waiting for?"

"I'm waiting for you to start moving!"

With an annoyed growl, he flipped around and said something else to Wilson, who nodded and began to walk away, Webber and Nick following.


	67. Chapter 67 Before We All Die

_**A/N:**_ **Mind: Hey, go to sleep**

 **Self: No! I must finish this chapter tonight!**

 **Mind: Go to sleep**

 **Self: Nonononononono**

 **Mind: SLEEEEEEEEEP**

 **Self: No! Screw off mind! I'm finishing this chapter**

 **Mind: Sleep**

 **Self: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz**

 **This is my excuse for not updating last night XP**

 **My excuse for not updating earlier today...?**

 **-shrugs- laziness**

 **Personally, I think, that you guys may just like this little roller coaster ride I have planned. I just want to give a bit of information:**

 **-I plan each adventure mode world to be five chapters long (I have one that is planned to be much longer, as I have already written four chapters and not a single one has to do with things, I can assume you guys know what chapter I'm talking about)**

 **-I am awesome (but you guys are awesomer)**

 **-An important thing I left out. Remember Wilson's comment in Chapter 50, 'It won't do anything!' (or something like that) when he was talking about Nick's sword? I forgot to mention that his sword has this ability to absorb darkness (possession, dark spirits, etc.) but won't effect any innocent animal. Strange, but effective against baddies. It can only hurt evil creatures (neutral doesn't count. His sword will not work on a koalafant but will work on a varg etc) Can't believe I left that out.**

 **-And last but not least, I'm sorry if I seem like I'm rushing chapters. I'm really trying hard not to, but some chapters ahead I'm so gosh darn excited to write that I just want to get to the parts. Some stuff goes _down_ later, and I _really_ want to see the look on you guy's faces (or hear the response via review ;D) when it does. Forgive me for poor execution of filler chapters. Even a couple of minor important chapters are something for me to drag through. Sorry for the super long A/N, back to the thingy. **

_**Wilson's POV**_

Nick and I gave each other a confused glance as we watched a spider and a monkey argue in a language that was definitely spider. Webber did not look very happy to see Wilbur again, but he wasn't kicking him, so that was a bonus. Finally, looking a bit agitated, he turned to face us. "What do you two think? Should we let him join us on our awesome hunt to find Maxwell's Door?"

"Does he know where it is?" Nick asked.

"He says he'll know when he sees the area around it."

"Oh that's useful," I growled. "Of course you'll know where the door is when you're near it."

"I think we should let him," Nick told him thoughtfully. "Afterall, the more there are-"

"The more the enemy has to aim at," Webber finished with a grin. "Okay, that decides it." He turned back to him to tell him, and the monkey jumped triumphantly in the air, snarling something once more in spider. "He said you won't be sorry," he translated for us.

"Why do I have the feeling I _will_ be exactly that?" Nick sighed.

"Whelp, first order of business," I grinned back at Webber. "You teach him to speak English."

"Hey, we're a student, not a teacher. Well, old enough to be a student but not a teacher- but you get the point. Don't think we can teach a monkey that knows nothing about a language all about that language. Well- maybe in a few years. Or in a few dozen years. In the higher double digits at least. But none of us plan on being here that long, correct?"

"Come on," I allowed myself an exasperated sigh. "Webber, you are the _only_ person here that knows English _and_ spider. How else would he learn?"

"Logic? Magic? How do youexpect _us_ to know?" He crossed his arms. "You act like we're supposed to know everything. Well _we are just a kid you know. You are older than us. Why don't_ you _know this stuff!_ "

"You are also 'just a kid' that is apparently indestructible," I retorted. "We've all tried to kill you. Well, except for maybe Nick." Nick smiled.

"It's true. I haven't."

"Wilbur apparently tried to push you into a volcano, I _was_ the one who half-blinded you, and-"

"Wait, what?" Nick cut off. "I thought you said he cut his eye on a branch."

" _Well,_ yes and no. Yes we told you he did, but no he didn't actually. You see, it was a long story, but I attacked him, sliced his eye, and probably would've done worse if it weren't for-"

"If it weren't for WX stopping you. That's what you were about say, right Wilson?" Webber finished forcefully. He turned to Nick. "He's so touchy about the subject. He acts like it the end of the world if he even so much as mentions WX."

 _Well, I have been dead before, and it's not all butterflies and rainbows, or screaming and fire in this case. It's worse. It leaves a stinging reminder of the fact you failed. Besides, I'm only touchy about it because I'm not exactly sure how Webber would react if I keep talking about him._ I thought guiltily of his post-Ancient Guardian-battle attitude. _He was out of it. And it took some random monkey pushing him into a volcano to snap him out of it._

 _I hope_ I _never get that close to someone only to lose them._

" _Anyway_!" Nick suddenly barked. "The Maxwell's Door! Let's go find that thing I just mentioned. Great idea, Nick! Let's go you guys!" He proceeded to grab the collar of my shirt and attempt to pull me along. "Come _on_ you guys!"

"Okay, _okay_ , we're _coming_ ," I struggled against his grip, and he released me, causing me to stumble and almost crash into Webber, who 'politely' stepped sideways to keep me from doing so.

"So, any plans on how to find this thing?" Webber asked, suddenly intent on the search.

"We all split up and scream _really loudly_ if we find it?" I suggested lightheartedly.

"What could we use to send a message instead?" Webber pondered aloud. Then, at once, all three of our gazes rested on Popsicle, Chester, Zerp, and Pyrite.

"Webber, you get Wilbur since you brought him," I volunteered him instantly. "Each one of us gets an animal to send news if we find it?"

"Sure," Nick agreed. "Though maybe we should make it a bit more obvious."

"Okay, if you find something, return back to this spot and send your animal holding a single twig to everyone else. If the animal holds nothing, then it means we're in trouble. Sound fair?"

Instantly, I thought I saw the little ice hound step closer to Webber, who's half-blind gaze flickered over to him before petting him around the ears.

"I call Zerp!" Nick practically shouted in my ear, snatching up the flower from where Chester was holding it in his mouth.

"Does that mean I get Chester and Pyrite?" No one answered, and I chuckled a bit. "Okay, give me." I grabbed the lavae tooth from Chester and the Eye Bone which apparently Nick had been holding all along, and the two hopped over to me and while Pyrite nuzzled me, Chester sat with his ever-present blank expression. "We done here? We ready to go?"

"It's almost nighttime," Webber pointed out, his 'whiskers' (they looked more like cat whiskers than spider legs to me) quivering. "We should rest until morning. Bring the fire pit supplies?"

I nodded, pulling rocks and logs from my pack as Webber and Nick began to sort the rocks into a circle to outline the pit. By the time I finally found the last log (Chester had eaten it, go figure), they were almost done, and the pit was built and alight by the time the sun set just a half hour afterwards. "So, are you guys ready to go face Maxwell- or die trying?"

"When you put it like that," Webber shook his head. "Absolutely not."

"I am! Just without the die trying part," Nick exclaimed enthusiastically.

"I just can't wait to see the look on Maxwell's face!" I joked.

"Imagine that." Webber changed his expression to one of boredom and stood up, acting like he was pulling up a collar on a shirt. "Pathetic humans! How dare you come and face me! I am the Amazing Maxwell! No one is more amazing than I! I am so amazing I will cower behind a spiky chair and send armies of foes at you!" He slowly turned to a more shocked look. "What? How could you have survived that! Well fine, leave. You're awfully boring now."

Nick clapped like a happy seal.

"Encore!" I demanded, and Webber started giggling so hard he had to sit down again and bury his face in his hands.

"Okay, stop it! Stop it!" He gasped in between laughs. "Oh, we can't breath, oh gosh. Wilson, just stop talking! Stop talking!"

None of us managed to get another word out for the rest of the night. I tried to say something, but before I finished half of the word we all started cracking up again. I was pretty sure most of it was a oh-one-good-laugh-before-we-all-die kind of laugh, not a this-is-so-funny kind of laugh.

So all-in-all... I don't think any of us had any good feelings about what lay ahead.

And of course, we were right to worry.

Though the circumstances were about to get stranger and darker than any of us could've imagined.


	68. Chapter 68 The King's Door

_**A/N:**_ **I am officially a high schooler! -confetti spurts everywhere- and it's summertime (and the fighting is easy) (sorry, had to make that joke) which means hopefully better quality stuff. Also, may I announce that this story is reaching it's 1-year anniversary! I'm so touched by everyone who has stuck with me this long, and I hope you all continue to do so. I have quite a bit in store for our little rag-tag team. At the end of this month, I will hopefully (emphasis on hopefully) be able to deliver a suitable chapter 'cause... Adventure Mode! =D**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"Come on, boy, let's find it first!" I called to the little ice hound Popsicle. He let out a little, gleeful yip and charged forward.

"Why do you want to find it first?" Wilbur asked loudly. Why we were stuck with him was beyond us, but be swished his tail passively when we told him that Nick and Wilson had told him to come with us, so we were stuck with him. _Not that he's the first person that tried to kill us._ A tiny part in our mind whispered.

 _But the others had_ reasons.

It was true, for the most part. Wilson had been possessed by the Nightmare Throne, afterall.

 _What about WX?_ It pried.

 _What_ about _him?_

 _What was his reason?_

 _Sheer spite? Look, be a good voice and waddle to the back of our mind and leave us be._

 _Nah_ _,_ the spider's voice came through clearly. _Listen. All I'm saying is maybe you should be a bit more cautious on who you can trust._

 _Are you saying we can't trust Wilson or Nick?_ I replied irritably. _Stop being so cryptic, and if you_ are _trying to be helpful... just don't, because I don't trust you._

He was silent save for a light chuckle. Focusing on the ground beneath our feet, we continued forward, listening intently for the bark of our hound discovering the Door or something else to give its position away. _What are we supposed to be looking for?_ We turned to Wilbur, who was watching a butterfly with keen interest, obviously forgetting he was supposed to be on the lookout for something. "Ahem, Wilbur, what are we looking for? No, better yet, why don't _you_ go out and look for it."

"Well, my arachnoid friend," he snickered at the glare we shot him. "That would require me to actually _do_ something. And, news flash, I don't like doing things."

"And yet you're apparently Maxi's worker," I accused. "Which requires you to do stuff. "

"Maxi? What kind of pet-name is Maxi? And _why the heck are you giving your mortal enemy pet names?"_

"You're just asking for a special pet name for you. Willy sound good?"

"No! Not the pet names! Argh, it _burns!_ " He fell to the ground, looking playfully dazed, though he let himself writhe in false agony. "Okay, _Webs_ , two can play at that game."

Before we could retort with another nickname, Popsicle let out a whine that for all we knew meant, 'Guuuuuuyyyyyysssssss!'

We laughed a bit and petted the hound on the head. "Okay, Pop, we're coming."

Just then, a bush spontaneously combusted, and a tiny fire worm crawled out, holding a tiny, burnt, shriveled up stick. "Pyrite?" We bent down to take the charcoal from her mouth.

"Didn't this mean something?" Wilbur asked, snatching up the stick and turning it in his palm.

"It means that the Door was found," I whispered. "Come on, we're supposed to meet back at the clearing."

"Wilson found the Door? Impressive," Wilbur mused. "Though awfully suspicious. You sure about this?"

"What? You're saying Wilson would lie?" We tipped our head. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Just be cautious, s'all I'm saying." Popsicle padded over to Pyrite and whined, and the lavae let out a tiny squeak in reply. Turning around, we looked back to where the clearing was. Nothing _smelled_ dangerous.

"Come on, Willy, we'd better be going back."

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"Where _are_ they?" I exclaimed, exasperated.

"Calm down! You're going to wear yourself out pacing like that," Nick stepped in front of the circle I was tracing.

"They should be _here_ by now!"

"We _are_ here," I heard Webber's voice drift through the trees as he stalked into view. "We were just about to find the Door instead and be a big hero, but you had to ruin that dream," he teased.

"Weeeellllllll..."

He raised his brow in question. "You... you _did_ find the Door... right?"

"Yes? Technically. Buuutttt there is just one problem with it."

"And what is that O' Powerful Scientist?"

"Well, let's just say it's being guarded by a _very_ unhappy tree guard."

I noticed Webber's focus instantly snap onto my face, his eyes wide, a trace of fear he wasn't quite able to squash flaring in them. "A t-tree g-guard?" He stammered. Then, he shook his head. "Then let's fight it!" He roared, racing off in a random direction.

"Wait!" I called after him. "Do you have any idea how to get there?"

He stopped in his tracks, then turned with a grin, as if hoping to smother any of the fear that showed through earlier. "No clue. Just point and we're on it!"

I pointed in the opposite direction he had ran. "Come on, Webber."

He let out a long-suffering sigh and nodded, walking back to join us. "How are we going to fight a tree guard?"

"I say we don't," I instantly told them. "I say we run for it and hope for the best."

"And no death involved," Webber agreed, his voice betraying an obvious shake. "Please... please don't die guys."

"I don't plan on dying for a very long time," Nick informed him.

"I as well. But if I do die, well, at least I get the enjoyment of haunting you for an eternity Mr. Incredible," Webber and I exchanged a friendly smile.

"We ready to charge this thing?"

"Yep."

"Mhmm."

"Okay, follow me, comrades!" I beckoned them towards me, and, albeit slowly, they trailed after me. It was turning warm again, though I knew that the Summer wouldn't be bad, since the Dragonfly, who was the master of heat, was slain. Soon it would be Fall, then Winter, then Spring again. Of course, if all went well, none of us would be there to experience the change. "Shh," I whispered to them after I led them behind the trunk of a thick pine tree. "It's over there." I pointed desperately to the guard, and I felt Webber shiver beside me. It was standing by the Door. Large, mostly wooden, and horribly familiar. "You guys ready?"

"Ready," they agreed.

"Leroy Jenkins!" Nick roared, launching himself out of the hiding place and right under the legs of the guard.

"Remember how strange this feels?" I whispered to Webber as we ran. "It'll feel that way for awhile." The tree guard smashed its massive arms down almost right on top of Nick, who, noticing his near-demise, yanked down the lever for the Door. Almost at once, four sets of Fuel-slick arms rose from the ground and grabbed us around our arms and torsos. I saw Webber fighting.

"No! No! Let go of us!" The hands didn't do anything. "Popsicle! Popsicle!" The ice hound studied its paws, ignoring his master's pleas. Then, the hands descended and I felt myself being dragged into the horrible, choking, earthy abyss in the ground.


	69. Chapter 1 A Cold Reception Part 1

**Part 3**

 **The King's Game**

 **Chapter 1 of 5**

 **A Cold Reception**

 **_Wilson's POV_**

 _Am I dead? Am I free? I'm dead aren't I?And what about the others? Are they here too? What's happening?_ Paralyzed, I lay on the ground. As far as I could tell, I was alone, save for the soft chirping of fall-time birds. _Where is Webber, Wilbur and Nick?_ I felt a tremor of fear. The others couldn't survive alone. Nick was too silly, Wilbur was... Wilbur... and Webber... poor half-blind Webber wouldn't get very far. He nearly died when we separated the first time, and I felt a hole open up inside me at the prospect of something happening now, after everything we've been through. Besides, he still wasn't as strong as he used to be. Although he wouldn't admit it, I could tell a part of him still hasn't gotten over his friend's death.

I tried in vain to open my eyes, to see _something_ , but blackness still pressed at me. The same question kept coming back over and over again. _What if something happened to them?_ Finally, a new sound came to my ears.

"Oh, You found my portal did you? You'd think you would have learned your lesson by now. Hmm. Let's try something a little more challenging, shall we?" I heard a _fwoosh_ ing sound, and suddenly I was able to wake. I quickly did a head-count. Webber was lying a few paces away, looking awfully tired and like he didn't want to get up, Wilbur was lying just a few inches from my head, muttering something, and lastly, Nick was sprawled across the ground, pushing himself up to his feet. Everyone was here.

However, another realization quickly dawned on me, and Nick and I exchanged a dubious glance. This wasn't home either. We were still stuck in our world. "Well that did a big pile of nothing," Nick mused. "What's the next plan?"

Still on my hands and knees, I crawled over to Webber and shook him. "Come on. We have to figure this out."

Wilbur was up in an instant, his tail waving passively as he examined the surroundings. Eventually, Webber finally stumbled to his feet, his eyes drooping with exhaustion. "Um... guys. I found something." I turned to see Nick examining a tall pole sticking out of a circular lock. On the top of a pole was a very, very, _very_ familiar piece of equipment. When Webber's eyes locked on it, I could tell he knew what it was as well. It was the radio Maxwell used to speak to all of us before we came to this world.

"What's this for?" He asked, as though trying to cover his confusion and shock.

As soon as Nick picked it up and pulled it from the lock, it let out a soft, low _vwoom_ sound, and he instantly dropped it. I reached over my shoulder to grab my bag to find my book, only to find it was gone. "My book!" I exclaimed, searching desperately for it. "It didn't come with us!"

"It seems like some sort of homing device," Nick pointed out, ignoring my cry.

"Of course not!" Webber scoffed. "That'd be too easy. Do you really think Maxwell would let us keep that book?"

"Webber, guess what else is gone," I whispered, and the pained look that came over his face proved he found out.

"Popsicle?" He whimpered, looking into the bushes. "Pyrite? Chester? Zerp? Where are you guys?"

Wilbur said something to him, and he sighed, replying in the spider's tongue.

" _Guys!"_ Nick barked. "Homing device." He pointed to the rod. "I think it's trying to take us somewhere."

"But where? To our death? I don't think we should trust it," Webber pointed out. "But still, it might be our only chance at getting out of here. And maybe it's the key to escape?" He growled something to himself, shaking his head in confusion.

I grabbed it from Nick's grasp and walked a few paces in one direction. The _vwoom_ sound did not change. I tried another direction, and I thought I heard it chime a slightly higher note. I nodded in its direction. "We should try." I told them.

"Okay-" Webber's words were cut off as the roar of thunder drowned out everything and the skies opened up, drenching us in seconds. With a more heavy sigh, he glared up at the sky. " _And_ we'd like to get out of here ASAP because we are not a big fan of getting wet."

"What?" I looked at him. "What are you talking about. You were perfectly fine getting wet during the spring!"

"Well it was more fun because we weren't _exploring alone,_ we were _hunting with Popsicle."_

"Okay, so instead of trying to find... whatever this thing is trying to take us to, we're sitting here talking about how we hate being wet, _while getting soaking wet mind you,"_ Nick looked slightly agitated.

"Right, good point. Also, on a related note, Webber, until Wilbur learns English, you are his official translator."

"What!?" He roared. "No! You're saying we have to be near him all the time just so you guys know what he's saying! Nope! Nope nope nope! We'd rather teach him English."

"So nice of you to volunteer, Webber!" I smiled at him, and Nick snickered.

He shot the ultimate glare of death at me.

"Anyway! Thing that rod is trying to show us! Now! Come on!" I ignored the glare, and instead grabbed the spider's arm and attempted to pull him towards where the rod was beeping towards.

"Alright! Alright! We're coming. _Heesh_." He yanked his arm away, snatching the rod for himself and tipping it slightly in the direction of it's chime. "This way, correct?" I nodded, and he began to march off. "Follow the leader everybody!"

Nick marched behind him purposefully, and I sighed, shaking my head before following them. I realized, step-by-step, the beeps were getting higher in pitch and faster in speed, until they were so close together I couldn't distinguish one from the other. Then, a gleam of metal caught my eye, and I bent down to pick up a strange, metal potato thing. The second I touched it the rod resumed its idle _vwoom_ sound every few seconds. I examined it. "What _is_ this?" I asked.

"It's a metal potato thing," Webber told me, nodding seriously. "What we're trying to figure out is why the rod brought us to it." He tipped it in a different direction. And once again the chime raised slightly. He raised his brow. "Odd. Perhaps there's more. Maybe it's a collection of things we're supposed to have."

"Oh no, no no no no no no no no. I'm _not_ falling for the item collection thing again," I crossed my arms. Webber looked like he was about to protest, and I cut him off. "Unless these things we're trying to collect has nothing to do with death. How does that sound?"

"We're fine with that." He forced a half-smile. "So, are we going to collect the things?"

I looked up at the darkening dusk sky. "I guess so."


	70. Chapter 1 A Cold Reception Part 2

_**A/N:**_ **So I'm on vacation for two weeks. This just show how much I love writing because I'm actually spending time from Florida to write. Actually I'm on a very scary ride because I'm in a giant city and I'm from a very small town where the biggest road is still only two lanes. But the mountains are nice, since I'm from a very flat area. What I'm saying here is I might not write AS much, but I hope to still update every once in awhile. We're not going to be gone THAT long though...**

 **Chapter 1 of 5**

 **A Cold Reception**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

We carefully examined the metal potato thing, then the rod, then finally at the cloud-covered sky, which had yet to cease pouring gallons of water on us. Although we enjoyed the warm rains of spring, this crashing, roaring, fat-dropped rainstorms had us waterlogged within seconds, and it didn't help that our fur absorbed quite a bit of rain, and it dragged us down and made us slower. We had to find the thickest forest possible to make our fire in just so it wouldn't be put out instantly, and even then, all four of us found ourselves chopping trees that gave no shelter and feeding the flames all night, which seemed significantly longer than usual.

All-in-all, we absolutely hated this place. Once the sun rose again, we had to set off as soon as we could see. We couldn't waste precious sunlight. "Okay, so what next?" Wilson asked. "Should we look for food or...?"

"Get out of here as soon as possible," I urged. "We can't _stand_ all of this rain!" It didn't help that Popsicle didn't come with us to this world, but that may have been for the better. Although he helped make the spring even more enjoyable, we couldn't see him being any happier about this soaking wet wasteland. _Pyrite... how would_ she _have fared in this weather? She's a lava worm, right? Wouldn't this much rain kill her? And Popsicle..._ We weren't sure, for we couldn't speak hound, but we were convinced that the ice hound had a crush on the lavae. He probably would've been badly shaken had she had frozen to death. _You and me both, Pop._

Wilson tipped the radio-tipped rod in each direction, trying to find the trail we had been following the night before. That was another thing. How in the _world_ did that radio find its way here? Painful memories of our past welled up in our head, but we pushed them back. Maxwell _betrayed_ us, he never _helped us_. But then again, if we never listened to him, we would have never met our friends...

"There it is!" Wilson exclaimed as the noise grew higher.

"I was afraid we lost it there," Nick sighed in relief.

We turned away from them, staring at the trees. Wilson, all though he wasn't exactly the most _mature_ person in the world, we still trusted his intelligence. Nick was silly and brave and kind of stupid at times, no offense, but still an awesome person none-the-less, even if he was a Power-whatamacallit. And then there was Wilbur... did we trust him? We couldn't tell. He _did_ try to kill us, and was working for Maxwell... but had we not fallen for Maxwell's charm as well? And as for trying to kill us, who _hadn't_ tried to kill us? And pushing into a volcano _was_ pretty creative.

This didn't help at all.

We were ripped from our thoughts by the sound of footsteps as Nick and Wilson began to follow the signal, and Wilbur looked like he was waiting for us. "Well I know who the heavy thinker is," he mused.

"WX once said that, too," I told him, tailing after the others.

He was silent for a moment. "Don't you think it's better he's not here now?" He finally asked tentatively.

We stopped. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you said he wasn't built with water resistance, right? He always short-circuited in rain? Well, with all this rain, wouldn't this have killed him anyway- and much for painfully at that?"

This... never occurred to us, but he made a good point. We continued walking at a faster pace. "Well, that doesn't matter right now," I growled hotly. "He's dead and there's no turning back."

"Wow! Wilson was right!" He matched our pace. "You _are_ touchy about the subject!"

Now we remembered why we didn't like him. We flipped around the face him. "Look you ignorant _monkey_ , you'd better shut your pie-hole this instant or we will rip your stupid tail off of your rump, tie it around your neck and hang you off of the nearest branch in this forest."

He did not seemed phased at all. "Whoa, little 9-year old making a threat like that! Now I've heard everything! Mind you, I've had worse threats from Tiger Lily." He snorted. "It was _her_ sharkittens that tried to eat my crown, and it was _Smokey_ that actually _did_ eat it and almost manage to choke on it. By the way I am an ape. If you wish to threaten someone who lived through the Fall of the Ancients you'd better refer to me as what I truly am."

For a second we thought our heart stopped beating. "Y-you lived through the Fall of the Ancients?"

He tipped his head. "You didn't know that? So did Tiger Lily. Mind you, she was just a wee sharkitten herself and I was just a baby, first of my kind!" He puffed out his fluffy chest. "I was pretty important."

"How have you... lived so long?"

"You don't know?"

"Hurry up, you two!" Wilson urged.

"Webber, animals don't just get old and _die_ here, something has to kill them. I've been smart enough to keep from getting killed, despite many desperate attempts from Maxwell- or Maxi as you call him. You too, you could probably have eternal life as well."

"But we're half-human," I argued. "In fact, basically a human inside of a spider. Maybe _he_ will have eternal life, but humans _do_ just get old and die. That's a fact of life for us."

He looked thoughtful for a moment, if that was possible for him. "I knew you weren't a full spider, that's obvious." He examined us. "But I didn't realize you were actually human."

"Yeah, I was actually eaten as an infant. Wait, didn't we tell you we were human?"

"I have a great memory," he retorted. "Just not for important stuff. You should already know that."

We were about to say something when we crashed into something in front. "Hey, watch where you're- oh..." In front of us, dozens, if not hundreds, of spider dens blocked the way. Wilson and Nick had stopped right at the edge of the the the silk, which spanned for miles in front of us.

"You know what this means, right?" Wilson croaked. We were too stunned to reply, especially when Wilson proceeded to stuff the rod into our hands. "Webber, you're the only one that can get through there. You'll have to... go by yourself."

"Ourself?" Our voice squeaked as it rose. "But... we haven't been alone... so far from everyone else..."

"Since our first winter?" Wilson guessed. He smiled. "The difference is, we're not antagonizing each other. We'll be right here when you come back. You _know_ you're the only one that can get through there."

"Wait," Wilbur stepped forward, then turned to Wilson and Nick. "I can climb trees," he told them. "I can get through also without disturbing the webbing. You don't _have_ to be alone."

"Ohhhh no, no no no no no no no, we are _not_ going with you, or we might have to follow up on that promise we made earlier."

"This is what I think is funny," Wilbur went on. "You see, as of now, you're too _young_ to even _reach_ a branch, let alone hang me from one. Therefore, that is an empty threat, my arachnoid friend."

We translated Wilbur's request for Wilson and Nick.

"You'd be willing to go with him?" Nick asked, confused.

"If it would shut him up, I guess,"

I turned to translate for Wilbur, but he waved his paw. "It's easier to understand then speak. I know what you two said, and I'm glad you agree that I'm awesome."

We just decided to ignore him, and instead cautiously stepped onto the silk. Nothing happened. We breathed a sigh of relief and continued to trek across the silk. The distance was shrouded by fog, and it wasn't long before we lost all sight of Wilson, and the only thing we saw of Nick was a faint glow from his sword. The ground had bits of gold every once in a while, and the only thing that gave away Wilbur's position was the occasional rustle of leaves overhead. In the meantime, the _ding ding ding_ of the rod grew higher.

"Are you okay down there?" Wilbur asked in a not-so-quiet-whisper.

"Yeah, we're fine, and you?"

"Slightly nervous, but fine." He dropped onto the ground on a small bare spot, his fur on end. He wasn't 'slightly nervous', he seemed like a nervous wreck. "It looks like we're about halfway there," his tail swished anxiously, rattling a couple of leaves on some nearby webbing and disturbing the silk. Three spiders let out a warning snarl and stepped forward.

"Look what we have here," one spat, twitching his front legs as though wanting to spring.

"How did you get so far in here?" Another one questioned. "Oh, it doesn't matter. We compete with the other spiders in this area for food, and her comes two decent portions on our turf."

"Hey!" I growled, stepping in front of Wilbur. "We're one of you. Let us _pass_."

"Oh, I don't know. What do you two think?" The second one, a female, turned to the others. "You're not from around here, and surely as a spider you know we are naturally cannibalistic. As for your _monkey_ friend," her gaze snapped to Wilbur. "Don't you think he has enough meat on his bones for the queen?"

The other two nodded, giving wicked grins. She flicked her left front leg just a tiny bit, and dozens if not hundreds of black-furred spiders and golden-furred spider warriors climbed out of their dens. Then, with another flick of her other front leg, they all stepped forward at once.


	71. Chapter 1 A Cold Reception Part 3

**Chapter 1 of 5**

 **A Cold Reception**

 _ **Wilbur's POV  
**_

 __"Climb!" I practically shouted at Webber, who stood frozen in fear.

"W-we can't. S-spiders don't know how to c-climb," he stuttered.

"Come on guys, can't we sort this out?" I offered. "His sister is Erika, you know her, right?"

Only a couple of spiders stopped, looking down at their claws in shame, but the female from before barked a laugh. "Erika? You fool, she doesn't rule here! This is _my_ turf."

A distant roar echoed underground, but no one else seemed to hear it. "Um... guys? Shouldn't we run away from impending danger?" But still, no one listened. It wasn't until the roar sounded much closer that the spiders began to slow their movements.

"What is that?" One asked, but was drowned out in the Alpha Female shouting:

"Run!"

The ground seemed to erupt as a column of purple and pink fur rose far above the spiders, letting out a roaring bellow. On its head was a glowing blue, crystal-like berry, and the sight of it seemed to terrify Webber as much as it did the other spiders. Once it finished with its roar- the spiders having all fled- it lowered its massive head to sniff us, and I spotted a small pink bow tied to the berry, and a noticeable lack of eyes, or if it did have eyes, they were buried beneath its fur.

"Hi," it greeted, its voice very feminine. "I'm Ariana, the Depth Worm."

We were both very confused. "How... can you speak spider, how did you get that bow, and I thought depth worms only lived in caves!"

"Well, I usually live in a cave," she said. "But I decided to follow you, not because I think you're cute or anything." Webber still seemed too confused to speak. "And I saw you were having trouble with those jerks. And they don't like depth worms, for some reason. They're very rude." She had her eyeless gaze fixed on Webber. "You don't look rude though." She turned to me. "You do."

I lashed my tail indignantly. "Okay, thanks for helping, but now its time to go back into the caves, Ari-whatsit."

"What _are_ you doing here?" Webber finally managed to say. "Don't depth worms have a bad reaction to light?"

"No," she answered. "We just like the dark. That's why we evolved to have no eyes. But we're hungry a lot. That's why we have the glow berries. They're very tempting." She shook her head to make it swing back and forth, and I had the sudden impulse to bat at it like a sharkitten. "Yeah, and I don't like you," she said to me again. "And it's not because he's friends with you or anything. Also I heard you had a sister. Is she nice? She'd better be." Her attention snapped back to Webber.

"Uh, yeah, she's pretty nice," he mumbled, and I could almost see the spider blushing beneath his fur, embarrassed by the depth worm's antics.

"Good, because I might have had to beat up a certain spider if she wasn't nice to you."

Now I literally _could_ see a rosy red blush, hidden mostly by fur, but obviously there. "W-well, we're glad you care," he stammered. "B-but we don't really know you."

"Oh, I know you don't know _me_ , but I know _you._ "

"Because you've been following us, right?"

"Well, not _that_ long," Ariana growled. "Only ever since you started walking across the silk. And I decided to follow you and saw that you got into trouble with some other spiders." 

"Well thanks," Webber's voice was suddenly curt. "But we have a thing to find," he motioned towards the beeping rod.

"Oh!" She looked, shocked, at the rod. "You have a divining rod!"

"A who-da-what-now?" I asked, confused.

"A divining rod. I don't know anything about it, but I heard some tall man talking about one to some shadowy girl."

"Tall man and- how could you see them?" Webber asked as though he knew exactly who she was talking about.

"Oh, sometimes in my dreams I get sent to this shadowy world where I hear this man and girl talk," she said nonchalantly. "They said something about this kid who was supposed to be the heir of some sort of throne. That's you, isn't it?" 

I looked at Webber, realizing I never heard this part of the story before.

"Well... yes, but we have no clue how to do it."

"Well, I can help if you want. Not that I want to be near you or anything."

"N-no, we're fine, thanks," he muttered.

"Okay, I'll just continue to stalk you from a distance like I was doing before, goodbye!" And she disappeared back into the ground.

"Oh gosh, dude, she was _totally_ tsundere towards you, Webber."

"What? What does that even mean?" He demanded. I laughed, but didn't answer his question. "We're serious, what does that mean?"

"Come on, let's go find that thing."

"No! What does tsundere mean?" He continued to complain about how I wouldn't tell him what the word meant. Even as we walked over the silk, the spiders ignored us, probably scared of Ariana.

"It's funny how all it takes to send a bunch of spiders running back to their mommies and daddies is a single depth worm, who is totally tsundere towards one of them. Well," I looked over him. " _Mostly_ one of them. If you consider yourself to be a spider. I'm not sure whether I do or not. Do _you_?"

"Halfway," he mumbled. "Depends on the situation, look, let's find this stupid thing before nightfall!" The sky had early turned black, the rain finally beginning to clear up for awhile. "We want to take advantage of the dry moments while we can, thanks."

"If you can even call this dry," I growled, yanking my foot out of a sticky puddle of brown mud.

"Point made," he replied as though I meant for him to hear my comment. "But it's better than giant raindrops being plopped on your head one by one and you have no clue how annoying that gets."

"Um... rain falls on me too. And... I'm also furry, so I hate rain too. Why do you keep complaining like _you're_ the only one that hates to be wet."

"We're not complaining because of that," he protested. "We're complaining because you won't tell us what tsundere means."

"Ask Wilson later," I told him. "Hey, you think we're getting near the thing yet?" The beeping had been the same tone for the past several minutes. "I thought it was supposed to get higher pitched."

"It is," he murmured, holding the thing in several different positions, including upside-down. "Maybe the dumb thing's broken."

"Maybe you're not doing it right." I snatched the rod away from him. I tipped it in one direction, then another. It gave off the same, monotone beep. "Odd. Maybe there's two things?"

"Or maybe something's blocking the signal?" Webber guessed.

"Ooooor maybe there's two things?" He shot me a glare. "Well, I'm sorry, but maybe we should stop being so pessimistic and look a little on the bright side of things. Now I know little Webby Web isn't used to being optimistic, but maybe you'd like the change!" He thwacked me across the muzzle so hard I was pretty sure he bruised it pretty badly. "For someone who hates cloudy weather, you sure are a storm waiting to happen." To be honest, I wouldn't want to be Maxwell right now, by the look that Webber was giving the divining rod. I didn't want to be the person standing in his way. He tipped his head slightly.

"Maybe we could try to find two things at once. You go that way, far from us, and we go that way, far from you?"

"You sure? You're going to miss me an awful lot, dontcha think?" I received another hearty thwack across the muzzle, and I tasted blood in my mouth. "You know, you are _very_ abusive to apes." _Maybe I shouldn't trust him. He's done nothing nice to me since we met. Why should I be nice to him?_

I found myself shooting him an arch look before taking off in the opposite direction of where Webber was going. As soon as I was out of sight, I spat on the ground, spitting out part of a fractured tooth and blood. I held my mouth in pain for a moment, looking back at where brushes separated Webber and I. I began forward to look when I heard a strange noise, like a robot trying to clear its throat, and a ball of lightning was shot directly at me, slamming into my side and throwing me back a few yards. As I tried to get back up, a clockwork knight bashed its head into my side, and I was thrown onto a wooden thing with red symbols printed around it. I tried to get up again, but my attempts were foiled by the sound of my ribs cracking beneath my chest. A few moments later, I collapsed on the wooden thing, the sound a stomping feet rapidly coming closer ringing eerily in my ears during my last conscious moment.


	72. Chapter 1 A Cold Reception Part 4

_**A/N:**_ **I am so sorry... my brother forced me to put in Ariana, I swear. Forgive me... XP Also, so apparently me saying 'I'm on vacation, won't update as often' was inverted. I'm able to, well, forced really, to have the time to write.**

 **Chapter 1 of 5**

 **A Cold Reception**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __I glanced wearily at Nick. "You think they'll be okay?" I asked.

"They'll be fine," he assured me. "Spiders don't mind Webber, remember?"

"And what about Wilbur?" I pointed out. "He's no spider."

"Yeah, but he has Webber. They'll be _fine._ " He sounded as though he was trying to convince himself as much as me.

What was odd though, was when Webber finally returned... alone. "Where's Wilbur?" he asked.

"I don't know," I snapped. "He was with you."

Alarm flared in his eyes. "We sent him back to you. Why, did he not come back?"

"You lost him?" I rubbed my forehead with a finger and thumb. "Great, nice job Webber. We trust you to take care of him, and you lose him. What did you say to him!?"

"We told him to go the opposite direction of us, and we went forward. By the way, you're welcome," he mumbled, dropping an odd ring thing into my hand and stuffing the rod back into my grip.

"I can't believe you!" I roared. He seemed taken aback, but I didn't pay any mind. I wouldn't, _couldn't_ , lose another member of our group. "You were supposed to work together!"

"Fine, _fine,_ we can go back if you want."

"No, I don't trust you." I eyed the silk cautiously. "I don't know, Nick. We should go find him. Not- you." I glared at Webber, who was about to take a step onto it.

He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it and dropped his gaze. "Right, let's go, Nick." I took a step onto the silk, and much to my surprise

"Don't you think you were a little harsh?" He asked.

"I bet you anything Webber was lying about sending him back," I admitted.

"You really think that he'd purposely send Wilbur to his death?" He sounded shocked.

"You don't?"

He didn't answer for a moment. "I don't think he'd purposely send him to his death, _but_ ," he went on before I could protest. " _However_ , I wouldn't put it past his _spider's half_ sending him to his death."

"His spider's half?" I echoed. "No, that's not right. He took over his spider's half long ago. That's why he speaks in plural."

"I guess you're right."

"But wait, no..." I suddenly thought of something. "If he took over his spider's half, why _does_ he speak in plural? If he _completely_ took over, wouldn't he only see himself as the dominate half?"

Nick looked like he had no clue were I was going.

"That means he's unstable," I told him. " _Very_ unstable. Like, hug you one second shank you the next unstable."

He grimaced. "Then we _really_ gotta get out of here as soon as possible."

"Well, I guess it depends." I pointed out, walking around a sticky clump of silk.

"On what?" 

"If the spider is good or bad."

"You'd have to be pretty bad to eat a child whole."

"Or hungry. And desperate. Hey, how would we even find out where to start searching?"

He facepalmed. "Of course. We should've brought Webber along."

"No, no we got this."

"Then how are we supposed to find him?"

"With our eyes and ears," I answered with a nervous laugh.

"If he's unconscious- or dead- he could be anywhere and not make a sound," Nick replied, looking a bit agitated. Then, something caught the light and sparkled at the corner of my vision. I turned to look at it, then waved Nick over to examine it as well as I crouched down for a better look.

"Looks like someone got into a fight here," I muttered, examining what looked like a small puddle of blood and a broken tooth. I looked deeper into the forest, realizing that it was just on the edge of the silken dens, and wondered who fought and why. "I guess we should go that way."

I stood up fully. "We'd better go, before-" my words were abruptly cut off by the thundering crash of lightning and the skies opened up once more. " _What_? There was light _just a minute ago_! Come on! Before the rain washes away any trail!" But to my surprise, the forest opened up quite a bit ahead, and the forest terrain switched randomly to checkered tiles and carpet. The set-up was familiar, and it wasn't until I saw the circular wooden thing in the center what I realized what it was. Several broken-down and beaten clockword-based monsters lounged on the outskirts of the piece. But what really alarmed me was the lump of broken brown fur lying on the wooden thing.

"We're too late," Nicholas choked.

At the sound of his words, the other clockworks in the area woke up and eyed us cautiously. One looked like bipedal, robotic horse. Another looked almost like it was wearing a cape that curled outwards at the end, a strange light bulb mechanic glowing on its head. The last was the most threatening, and I was actually glad Webber didn't have to see it. It strongly resembled the Ancient Guardian, replace the fur with reddish-pink metal and the horn with what looked like a chess castle, then shrunk it by about a third. It was smashing the ground as it hopped back to its position, then turned to stare at us like the others did. Suddenly, it charged with a metallic roar, then raced towards us in a straight line, ignoring its companions - or com _pain_ ions, hehe- and smashing the light bulb one and two bipedal horses. Once it was closer, Nick and I jumped out of the way and it continued running in a straight line into a tree. _It's like playing a game of Chess. That is a rook, the horses are knights and the light bulbs are bishops. Only we're the pawns!_ However, the rook quickly turned around and charged at us again, which I jumped away, and Nick politely stepped out of his way as he smashed a marble tree.

That was when it crashed into a _very_ enraged Spider Queen. She let out a horrible, growling, snarling bellow then lashed her mighty claws down the rook's face, splitting the metal as though it was a knife through butter.

"Thought you guys might need help," I heard Webber muse as he stepped into the open behind the queen. "Thought this queen might be useful." In a matter of seconds, the rook fell with a sweeping _woosh_ and collapsed, gears and wires spilling out from its lacerated jawline and face. Webber shot the rook a smoldering glare, so heated I was surprised it didn't melt the remaining skin of the rook's, and he muttered something I just barely caught. "We're imagining this is you." As the queen dispatched the remaining clockworks with ease, I spotted Webber crouching over Wilbur, his white eyes wide with horror. A sudden flashback rammed through my thoughts and I saw almost this exact same scene. Only there wasn't a savaged rook nearby. And we weren't on a carpeted flooring. And it was most certainly not Wilbur Webber was crouching over, tears running down his cheeks.

There _was_ a large rhino though. And a complex labyrinth visible. And most of all, the lifeless, mangled form of his best friend, who died in his arms.

"No, no no no no, not you too," he choked, lifting up the beaten ape in his arms. I saw the spider queen leave, her job finished, and I climbed onto the wooden thing with the other two.

"Don't worry," I whispered to him. "He-he's breathing."

Webber looked up again, his eyes glittering unnaturally brightly with barely contained tears. "Why? How come every time..." he looked down and touched a gaping wound in his chest, hidden mostly by blood, but even as we stood there the rain was washing it away, revealing a deep, winding mark that zigzagged from one shoulder to the bottom half of the other side of his rib cage. After a moment's notice, I realized what made the wound. Jutting about an inch from his wound was an oddly shaped, white thing, slightly pointed at the end. It took me a moment to realize that it was actually one of his ribs that had pierced the skin and lacerated his chest. Upon further examination, I found that he was actually breathing very oddly. Every breath in, half of his chest expanded, the other half caved in slightly. Every breath out, both sides fell weakly. A trickle of blood ran from his mouth, forming a frothing pool of blood and water next to his face. His tail was also crooked, as though it snapped in half in the middle, and his jaw had been mangled as well. Last of all, his leg had been almost completely smashed.

These were the kind of wounds that could kill someone by themselves. Having all of them at once... it was very possible these kind of wounds would kill even someone like Wilbur. Gingerly and without a word, we worked together to lift him without making his wounds worse. Nick held his tail carefully off of the ground.

"No..." I heard him whimper weakly in English somehow, and his eyes flickered opened. "My crown..." he pawed at the air towards his crown, which had fallen but somehow hadn't been smashed. However, almost as soon as he said, he fell unconscious again. Nick took the liberty of grabbing the crown for him, placing it on his stomach where no wound was visible, and watched in amazement as he actually moved his arms to grab it, a ghost of a smile creeping onto his face.

Slowly, we began to make our way through the silken ground, being careful not to drop the injured prime ape. Luckily, we made it through the silk without trouble. We set him right outside of it so I could examine his wounds once more, and try to figure out what to do with them. The thing that worried me the most at the moment was the caved in rib cage. Even the compound rib fracture didn't bother me as much, though it sure looked like it should. If only we had something to crack it back into place, like putting a bone into its socket. "I need something rounded and sharp... like a hook." Webber and Nick looked at each other in confusion, and I snapped my sight to glare at them. " _Now_."

"How sharp?"

"Sharp enough to pierce two layers of skin."

Webber eyed the sharp bone that jutted out of Wilbur's rib cage, then looked up at me. " We know something that might work." He looked into the distance, where I could barely make out a white-boned skeleton. _Bone shards..._

As he went to go retrieve them, I looked over the other wounds. Maybe after setting his ribs back the compound fracture would work itself back into his chest. If not... that might get really bad. The next wound that looked really bad was the gash that the rib had ripped open. I knew webs were good for binding wounds and soaking up blood. I glanced at the silky turf and managed to rip a bit off of the ground. Still no spiders came out to challenge us. Luckily, Wilbur was very furry, and the silk stuck quite well as I tried to stop the blood flow. It was soaked within moments, but I hoped that it would stop or at least slow down new blood. I also patched up his jaw with the same method, and I was finishing just as Webber returned with a sharp, hooked bone.

"I hate working with contaminated items," I muttered. "But it's not like there's any other way to get this fixed." I looked at Webber. "This will hurt him a lot, and by that, I mean _a lot._ But we have to get this fixed. So you take this bone-" I grabbed the bone. "Watch carefully."

I turned back to him, then spoke to Nick and Webber without looking. "Hold down his arms and legs, but try not to damage him more. Be careful, but hold on to him tight enough because he _will_ flail, it's the body's defense mechanism, and I'd like to not get ripped to shreds by him." I worked out where to stick the bone as they positioned themselves so that they were holding him down, but not harming his injured leg. With a quick stabbing motion, I buried the sharp end in his skin, and he and I both flinched. I slowly moved it, hoping not to damage something vital, then managed to get the other end around one of the collapsed ribs until both ends were jutting out again. "Someone get me silk or some other sort of very strong string." A few moments later, I was handed a handful of spider webs, and I got to work securing it against both ends of the bone shard and I handed Nick the other end. "When I tell you to pull, I want you to pull as hard as you can. We need to get his ribs set back to normal. It's, kinda like popping your arm or leg back into place, but a lot more intricate. Ready?"

"Ready," Nick replied uncertainly.

"Okay," I fixed the bone in place. "Pull!" Nick lurched back and I heard a painful _crack_ from Wilbur's chest, and, as I expected, he thrashed, trying to kick Webber and I away. "No!" I growled, holding him down until he finally stopping struggling, and fell back into deep sleep. His breathing had returned to normal, albeit fast and shallow.

Now for the tricky part. I removed the bone shard and eyed the open fracture. I never learned how to fix them without surgery... I set my jaw. Maybe I could push it back in and wrap his chest to hopefully help it heal? The end was jagged, but I might be able to do it. I put both of my hands on the bone and pushed a bit, hoping to see it give. Then I realized that it must have been flipped around, or else it wouldn't have been able to rip his skin like that. Trying not to hurt him worse, I tried twisting the bone, and was shocked to see it actually move. Once the end was pointed down, I tried again to get it back into to place, and much to my surprise, it actually disappeared after a moment of struggling with it. I covered the new wound I had created and looked over him again. I wasn't the best doctor in the world, but technically medicine was a science. I hoped I had done it right. I felt Webber shift closer to me and I looked at him.

"The wooden thing... that's the actual machine, I think. The other things go on it."

"Then let's hurry up and fix it." I looked at the ring thing and metal potato thing. "Are these the last pieces?"

"We don't think so," he mused. "It doesn't _feel_ complete, you know?"

I looked at the injured Wilbur, then back at him. "Then let's go find the rest of the things, shall we?"

 _ **A/N:**_ **Wow, I had to do a bit of creative liberties here. Note: I actually have no clue how to fix most of these wounds. The only things I had a clue about was the webs are good for stopping blood flow (Thanks Warrior Cats) and I knew a little bit about setting the ribs back, (Burn Notice, I hope you're right...) But what I'm saying is: I HAVE NO REAL CLUE HOW TO FIX THESE KINDS OF WOUNDS. Especially the compound fracture. I looked and looked and looked but I couldn't find anything on fixing an open wound fracture without surgery. Everything I learned was from books or TV shows. XD**


	73. Chapter 1 A Cold Reception Part 5

_**A/N:**_ **I will warn you, I'm struggling with a bit of writer's block, so I'm sorry if this chapter isn't that good. The last thing I want is to have to shelf this story, because believe it or not, I'm actually nearing the end (if you can call over 20 chapters nearing the end), and I don't want to stop when I have such awesome stuff planned.**

 **Chapter 1 of 5**

 **A Cold Reception**

 **_Wilson's POV_**

 ****Wilbur had woken up.

It was only the day after he was injured, and yet somehow he was wide awake and looking already much better, despite the obvious wounds lacing his chest and his messed up jaws and leg. His eyes were bright and he chatted happily with Webber, who looked slightly guilty, but not as much as I thought he'd be. Though there was one problem I realized that morning, though.

You could always tell he was content when he had a slightly bored expression and his tail waved slowly back and forth. He had the bored expression, but his tail flopped uselessly on the ground behind him. When I asked about it, though, his reply was translated by Webber as, "I don't even feel any pain in it, though."

This worried me quite a bit. Why couldn't he use it? Why wasn't there any pain in it? Was it paralyzed? Why would it be? What use was a monkey who couldn't use his tail to climb? There was one thing for certain: he was not going to be doing any more tree climbing until he was able to use his tail again. _It could just be bruised from the break,_ I thought optimistically. _Or... is the tail part of his spine? No, I don't think so. But then again... no_ , I told myself fiercely. _Probably a bruise._

He was currently sitting, watching Webber intently, talking to each other, but they sat too far from Nick and I to hear what they were saying.

"What are they doing?" Nick asked.

"I _think_ that Webber is finally trying to teach him English," I answered, allowing myself a smile. "It'd be nice if he actually did what he was supposed to."

"Does he not most of the times?"

"You should've known him before you came here," I found myself barking a laugh. "He was such a troublemaker, you leave him and WX alone for a minute and you'd find them antagonizing each other one way or another."

He joined in my laugh. "How?"

"Well, right after we got here, they got into a fight over a rabbit. They ran into a tree guard, and Webber got crippled by it for a few weeks. Guess what? Very next day, they were arguing again. No wait, scratch that. They made a deal not to attack each other until Webber could fight back."

"Sounds like Wilbur took that role," he looked back at the two.

This gave me a funny realization. "Why does Webber always need someone to fight with? He just wasn't the same after WX died, and it looks like Wilbur was just what he needed."

"Some people are like that. I knew a few people who had the strangest personalities and the oddest wants."

"But the need to constantly attack someone?"

He shrugged. "Perhaps he just needs the closeness. After all, if you think about it..." I looked once more at the chatting animals. "I'm convinced that they trust each other much more than they let on. It's always the rivals that become the best friends, isn't it? Or maybe he just truly doesn't trust him?"

"Well, he'd better learn to trust him if that's the case," I concluded. "Because I bet you anything it'll start raining again very soon, and we still need more things. I have to agree with Webber. It doesn't feel complete, but I bet that wooden thing _is_ the actual thing."

"It's strange that we seem to actually know what we're doing now."

"We don't," I answered grimly.

"That's why I added _seem_ in there. We have- how many- three things now? Not bad if you ask me."

"Well, Wilbur is doing better now, maybe we should go to find the other things?"

"It's only been a day. Maybe we should let him heal longer. And what about his tail..."

"He won't be able to climb until he's able to use his tail. If he won't be able to use it anymore, he won't be able to climb. If he tries to, he'll probably end up falling and breaking his neck. Then again, with how he is already healing from his injuries I'm beginning to wonder if that'll actually hurt him. Besides, how he and Webber are acting I wouldn't be surprised if he did the honers."

He let out a huff of laughter. "Naw, I think that they'll be fine. And personally, I want to get out of this world. You might be right about finding the other things as soon as possible."

"I'll ask Webber if he agrees," I said reluctantly. "We need to see if Wilbur will be okay."

"You looked about ready to smack Webber yesterday. Are you sure you want to talk to him?"

"That was when I thought he might've gotten Wilbur killed," I pointed out. "Then I realized that's apparently impossible. I'm surprised their not best friends by now. 'Hey, let's form a clan. Let's call us Impossible-To-Kill-Clan'. Wouldn't that be funny?"

"That'd be beautiful."

"Anyway, hey Webber!" I called, and the spider turned to look at me, disdain flashing in his white eyes.

"What?" He spat.

"Do you think that Wilbur would be able to go on?"

The prime ape jumped up on Webber's shoulder, his tail falling uselessly behind him, but he didn't even flinch at the pain that had to have shot through his still broken ribs. "Of course I am!" he exclaimed in perfect English, and I shot a surprised glance at Webber, who didn't even try to push him off.

"He's a shockingly fast learner," Webber informed us. "But anyway, yeah, he's probably right. What's really a shock is that it didn't take much longer for him to heal. It took us weeks for us to heal when we were attacked by the tree guard. And that was just some broken bones. He not only had a- what'd you call it?- a compound fracture?- but his leg was also smashed, and his jaw was pretty savaged as well."

The chest wound was still covered by silk, but he didn't seem hampered by the broken leg, and although his jaw was still pretty bad looking, it was straight and was already healing over.

"Tail?" He looked at Webber, resorting to the spider's language.

He looked helplessly at me, then lowered himself to be face-to-face with him, replying grimly in spider. Wilbur looked down at the grass under his feet, then grabbed his tail and set it in front of him. Webber asked him something, and he grabbed his crown, polished it for a moment while replying, then replaced it on his head. Webber looked completely shocked, then shook his head and beckoned us along with a wave of his hand, snatching the divining rod.

"C-come on," he urged. "Let's go."

Rain was suddenly dumped on our heads, and just about everyone looked completely miserable. "How many things do you think there are left?" I asked Webber quietly.

"Um... maybe two or three? Or four?" His gaze clouded with confusion.

"What did Wilbur say that shocked you so much?"

"We asked how he healed. H-he said-" then he stopped himself, then straightened. "Sorry, can't talk about it."

I was made even more curious, but of course neither of them were willing to give any more information. Wilbur snatched the divining rod from Webber, chattering something, then pointing frantically towards the opposite direction of the silk ground.

"Is he telling us to go that way?" I whispered.

"Yeah, he says that the things are all that way," Webber replied, though he sounded a bit cautious as though wondering whether to believe him or not. "But on a brighter note, he's such a good learning, he should be able to speak full sentences in maybe just a few weeks. He apparently has a good memory for languages. It's strange though," he went on. "How he speaks, it almost sounds like he has a bit of Ancient accent."

"The Ancients had an accent?"

"Well, you know how people who learn a language tend to have a little accent thing going on? Well, he's speech sounds like he's been speaking Ancient his whole life." We both began to follow the trail the ape had pointed out.

"Why do you think that is?"

"Well, according to him, he was actually the first prime ape, born in the _Ancients_. How's that for a curve ball."

"Hey, hold on a second. Nick? Where'd you go?" I looked around, not even hearing what Webber had told me.

"Sorry! Sorry!" He appeared from behind a bush. "I saw something interesting and I wanted to look at it."

"Okay, that's all of us. Anyway, what'd you say?"

He gave me a glare. "We _said_ that according to Wilbur he was actually born in the Ancients. So it shouldn't be surprising he has the accent. That would technically be his native tongue."

"Born in the _Ancients?_ How can he survive that long?" Wilbur? Living in the Ancients? That sounded unlikely.

"Apparently animals don't just get old and die in this world. Something has to kill them."

"As I said, how has he survived this long?" I glared up at the sky as a raindrop splashed me in the eye, then blinked rapidly to clear my vision.

"Somehow no one's killed him. Mind you, we're pretty sure he's a lot smarter than he lets on. Plus the Ancient language is actually a bit similar to English, so that might also be why he's learning so easily." He made a good point.

"Isn't the Ancient Guardian- well, an Ancient? Would Wilbur be able to understand the Ancient Guardian?" Nick asked.

" _We_ understood the Ancient Guardian. He's lived surrounded by spiders for hundreds-if not thousands of years, which means he probably learned the language. We don't need an annoying monkey to translate a murdering beast for us." He clenched his fist, his eyes burning with rage for a split second before he closed his eyes and his shoulders relaxed.

Such a long time, and he still hadn't forgiven the Guardian.

I sighed. "If only Wilbur could've seen us before everything went wrong. Or Nick. Man, Nick, we used to be so different."

Webber's eyes clouded with grief. "You have no idea how different we used to be. Before..." he took a deep breath. "Before Maxwell."

"Life was so boring before Maxwell," I joked. "And lonely. Gosh, you have no clue how bored and lonely I was."

"If only our- _my-_ life could be described as boring," Webber murmured. "Then again, I was eaten when I was five and I lived two years before taking over, so it's been interesting."

"What was your life like, Nick?"

"The complete opposite. Actiony battles, awesome friends. It was pretty great. Then again, I've gotten the exact same things here, so that doesn't make much of a difference." 

Wilbur turned without a word and gave a see?-awesome-friends look. Well, the best he probably could with his messed up jaw.

"Oh! I heard it get higher!" I exclaimed. "Keep going that way!"

"Wilson, you know that Wilbur and I were hearing the thing get higher pitched several minutes ago," Webber let out a chuckle.

"That doesn't count! You guys got awesome hearing!" I protested, and Webber's chuckle turned into a full-blown laugh.

"It's not _our_ fault that you guys have loser hearing!" He promptly facepalmed. "Great, we've spent too much time around Wilbur."

"Same," Nick nodded seriously.

"So, do you think that after this we'll be home?" I asked.

"Home..." Webber murmured wistfully.

"I sure hope so," Nick replied.

"I think we all do," I agreed. "What will you do when you get home?"

"Sleep," Nick said instantly, a hint of laughter in his voice.

Webber didn't say anything, and I couldn't figure out why for a moment. _Oh... poor kid. 'And the new captor of the Nightmare Throne. That's him._ I was the one who never gave up, and Nick took the title of the Keeper of Power. WX was the friend who gave life for his friend, so Webber was the new Captor of the Nightmare Throne, or at least that was what the Ancient Guardian had implied.

I gave a nervous chuckle. "I'll go back to what I had been doing, I guess. Being absolutely bored. That's how I was tricked in the first place." I suddenly wished that I hadn't said anything. None of us had particularly discussed how we had been tricked to coming to this world. Well, as far as I knew they were all tricked.

"We were tricked too," Webber whispered.

"I just woke up here," Nick added.

"What happened to you, Webber?"

He buried his face in his hands and refused to speak, though I saw his shoulders quiver as though holding back tears. _He's holding back a lot. You have to imagine the sort of horrors he has been through that makes him so used to grief that he almost never cries. I have seen him cry a grand total of once, and_ that _was a terrifying sight._

"Hey! Lovebirds!" Suddenly, something square-shaped and hard hit me painfully on the head. I jumped and glared at the direction it came from. Wilbur sat with a slightly crooked grin from his previous jaw injury, and all of the pity I had for Webber vanished. _For crying out loud, does he catch on to these words himself or does Webber teach him even words like lovebirds? "_ Come on!" I bent down to pick up the item he threw at me, and found an odd box thing, about the size of my fist.

"Is this a thing?" I asked.

He looked thoughtful as though trying to remember the words, then instead gave me a thumbs up. He turned to continue moving but quickly tripped on his useless tail and fell flat on his face. Looking more determined that ever, he stood up again and began to walk away, the front half of his body coated in dark brown mud.

"Are we just going to let him lead us around while we chat?" Nick pondered.

"I don't see why not," I replied with a grin. "But anyway. At least we got stuck with each other. I mean, think of how unbearable it would've been if we would've been alone, and I don't even _want_ to wonder what would have happened if we would've been with a different group."

"They could be better," Webber offered. "Maybe they'd actually know what to do."

"Or maybe they'd be confused like us. Or worse. All I'm saying, if I had to be stuck with a bunch of losers, I'm glad it was this bunch of losers."

"I'm honestly touched," Nick told Webber seriously, nodding. The latter let out a huff of laughter.

Suddenly, something nearby let out a battle cry, and I spotted a pig rushing towards us with an enraged expression. "No like spider!" It roared.

"Gosh dangit," Webber hissed. "Not these guys again."

It attempted to attack the child, but he nimbly jumped out of the way and it turned and ran, then turned back to attack again. I always had been on good terms with pigs. Apparently they weren't a fan of spiders, though, judging by this one's reaction to him. _I wonder what the story behind_ that _is_...

However, the fight would have much easier, but there was one problem. It appeared that after we went through Maxwell's Door, that all of our stuff had vanished. Strangely enough, Webber still had his necklace, but his beloved obsidian spear was gone. So he practically had nothing to attack with, but his eyes burned with determination and he just continued to dodge the punches thrown at him.

"You know, this isn't really fair-" he started as the pig tried to punch him. "We did absolutely nothing, and we bet that your punches actually- ow! That was rude!" The pig managed to hit him in the shoulder.

Luckily, Nick's sword didn't vanish, either, so he shot me a grin then stepped in between the pig and the spider kid, holding his sword outwards. I knew it wouldn't do anything, but the pig didn't. It saw the pointed blade and instantly turned, crying "Home! Home!"

"I _hate_ those guys," Webber growled.

Nick barked a laugh, and I had to, too. He glared at both of us, then turned away with a 'humph'. Just ahead, Wilbur had watched the whole thing with his typical content expression. I had to admit, he was much like a cat in that you could tell everything he was thinking by how he moved his tail, and he was fairly hard to read with his tail paralyzed. _I really hope that he's able to move it soon. Man, I really hope it's just bruised, and not paralyzed permanently._

"Oh well, _your_ useful," Webber scoffed the prime ape.

The latter grinned.

"I love how we somehow managed to go from the topic of what we were like when we first came to this world to how we're a bunch of awesome losers," I joked, earning laughs from Nick and Webber, and Wilbur, apparently understanding everything I said, nodded agreeably.

"Are we near the others things yet?" I asked them, knowing very well about their 'superior hearing _'_ now.

"Uummmm... _mmmmaaaaaayyyyybbbbeee?_ " Was Webber's confused reply. This did not make me feel better whatsoever.

I was so intent on listening to the divining rod, I didn't notice the approaching night. Because of this, it hit us suddenly and without warning.

Instinctively, I moved straight towards Nick with his glowing sword. "I'm happy that my sword can save your guys' butts," he laughed.

I didn't say anything. Apparently we all were gathered around him, but the light area was small, and I was on the brink of darkness.

 _What was that? Did something just brush up against my leg? Who just laughed in the distance? Were those footsteps behind me?_ Daytime was a long way away, but as the sun finally rose, we quickly broke apart our circle.

Wilbur beckoned us forward, taking off in the same direction as the day before. "Why is he so gosh darn pushy?" I whispered, and Webber let out a snort of amusement. "Maybe I don't want to go that way."

He pushed me affectionately. "You're so whiny!"

"I'm not whiny!" I protested. "I'm just very outspoken about my complaints."

"That's called whiny, Wilson," Nick chuckled.

"Hey!" Wilbur hopped back towards us. "You three. C'mon!"

"I guess he _is_ pushy," Nick laughed a bit harder.

"Well, the thing _is_ not too far away," Webber mused. "It's been getting higher for a few minutes."

"Tell me when it does!" I slapped him lightly in the back of the head.

The last thing turned out to be next to a pig house. Probably the same one that attacked Webber just minutes before. It was surrounded by flowers that their mere presence made my head hurt. It was a crank-like object, made of a sturdy metal that I was pretty sure I had never seen before. "I love how we just call these 'things'. We don't even know what their called."

"We know what they're called. Metal potato thing, ring thing, box thing, crank thing and wooden thing. Those are cool enough, right?" Webber groaned again before I could reply. "Gosh, we've been spending _way_ too much time around Wilbur. Come on, let's go back to the wooden thing to put this thing together."

"Is this all?"

"It feels complete."

"Do you have _any_ clue how to build the wooden thing?"

"The _Teleportato!_ _That's_ what it's called!" Webber suddenly yelled.

I checked my hearing. "Heesh, are you _trying_ to deafen me?"

"No! The Teleportato! That's what the wooden thing is called!"

"Where in the world did you hear the name the Teleportato?" I asked.

His white gaze clouded with confusion. "We're... not sure... but... we might have an idea on how to put it back together. Come on, let's go find it again."

"Wait! I just realized something! Webber! You're the only one that can get to the wooden thing!" Nick and I exchanged a glance.

He stopped, then turned to look back at us. "Don't worry. We know a way to keep the spiders away. Just come on." He continued to walk.

Wilbur followed him without complaint, and so did Nick and I. We all seemed to sense the strange air that surrounded Webber when he spoke of knowing things he shouldn't. _Like the path to the Ancient Guardian's chamber. And the proper name for the Teleportato. Man, there is a lot we don't know about Webber, isn't there? I'm beginning to think that there is a_ lot _more than meets the eye with him._

By the time we reached the silk, it was dusk again. Webber stepped forward onto on. "Oooohhhhh Ariana!"

 _Ariana...? What the heck...?_

Of all the things that I expected Webber's plan to be, a depths worm wearing a little pink bow was the _last_ thing I expected.

"Oh, hi again," she looked wearily at Nick and I, then flat out glared at Wilbur, who gladly returned it. "Are these your friends? Do they speak English? I hope so. Do _you_ speak English? I learned English a while back ago, so I have no clue if you know too. Anyway. So. Hi, I'm Ariana, the depth worm, and it's not like I was following you the whole time or anything..."

"Yeah, yeah. Look, we'd really appreciate it if you would keep the mean spiders away again."

"Oh, anything for _you_." She turned to the silken ground. "Look you little jerks if you take one step out of your pathetic balls of silk I swear it'll be the last thing you ever do!" She looked back at us. "Was that good?"

"Thanks Ariana. We really appreciate your cooperation."

"Okay, no problem. See you guys later. _Especially_ you," she butted Webber with her head.

"Bye bye now. We'll call you if we need you," Webber murmured uncomfortably, shuffling his feet in apparent embarrassment.

"Don't hesitate." And in just a moment, as fast as she appeared, she was gone, leaving all of us confused or, in Webber's case, blushing insanely.

"Okay, that was... odd. Who...?" Nick looked expectantly at Webber.

He raised his hand. "Don't ask. Long story. Like, _very_ long story. Anyway, the spiders should leave us alone now, turns out their scared of her. How convenient."

The child was right, and we walked undisturbed over the silk. Only once did we see the face of a spider poke out from the silk, but another one quickly dragged it back inside. For some reason, I didn't hold the same fear in the massive depth worm as they did. Even the first depth worm I ran into seemed much more intimidating. _Then again, I'm pretty sure that Ariana is younger, and it helps when she can apparently speak English. It_ also _helps when it isn't threatening your friends, who are in the bottom of a hole that's impossible to escape from._

Once we finally managed to reach the wooden thing, Webber didn't even ask or say anything, just grabbed the four things and set them next to the wooden thing. First, he grabbed the ring thing, and, almost as though his hands were being guided, expertly clicked it into place on top of the machine. He placed the box thing on the top, and it flashed brightly, splitting into two- one had a positive sign carved into it and the other had a negative sign. He grabbed the two objects and put one on one side and the other opposite of it. The crank did a similar ritual of splitting into two, and these pieces clicked into place on either side of the ring thing. Lastly, the metal potato thing stood up in the center of the piece. The rain seemed to bead up and slide off instead of being absorbed into the frame. _That's probably why you can't even tell anything happened here,_ I thought wryly, shooting a glance at Wilbur.

Webber waved his hands over the red symbols on the wooden thing, and they glowed a deep red, the metal potato thing rising from the platform, then morphed into the shape of Maxwell's face. "Creepy," Nick whispered.

My stomach tightened in hunger pains, and I gritted my teeth. "Let's hurry this up, shall we?"

But Webber's eyes were tightly closed, and he was muttering something under his breath, too quickly for me to make out what he was saying. This time, I actually knew what to expect, and I didn't struggle as shadow hands rose from the ground and dragged us back under the ground.


	74. Chapter 69 Destiny

_**Popsicle's POV**_

 __I had to stop myself from sliding into the door as everyone just... disappeared. I looked fearfully up at the tree guard, but it had also seen the sudden disappearance of the group, and had fallen asleep. A howl of dismay escaped my throat, and it was echoed among our group.

"Where'd they go?" Zerp asked.

"They just vanished!" Chester exclaimed.

I felt my heart skip a beat as Pyrite, the young lavae, pressed against me, and a small cloud of steam appeared as hot lava met ice cold fur. "Are they okay?" She squeaked.

The other three began to fret about their safety, and I had to break away from Pyrite, leap up onto a small boulder and bark as loudly as I could to get their attention. "Everybody calm down!" I barked, and they were silenced at once. "Why are you worried about their safety? You all know they'll be fine."

"Not always!" Chester protested. "You're only thinking about Webber! It's pretty obvious _he's_ not going anywhere."

Zerp murmured agreement, but Pyrite still looked up at me with big eyes. At first, she was just a small worm encased in a bubble of lava, but I realized that as she aged, she took on a more greenish appearance, her scales began to form, and she had grown a bit larger, though the lava bubble didn't grow with her. Along with this, she was beginning also to get more bug-like eyes. It was becoming very obvious that she was a baby dragonfly. "No he's not!" She cried. "He thinks of _everyone_ , don't you, Popsicle?"

Despite being an ice hound, warmth bubbled up inside of me. Would it be wrong for a creature of ice to like a creature of lava? Would it be too weird? What would Zerp and Chester think if they knew what I actually thought of Pyrite- _steady, Popsicle. Don't get yourself worked up._ Being the first animal, I took the liberty of leadership, though it didn't help when two of them hardly respected you. _Or when the last one has a face like her's._ Then again, who knew how old Chester and Zerp actually were?

If they _were_ old, though, they were the grouchy kind.

Chester grabbed his eyebone in his mouth and looked around the area. "I don't know," he said uneasily, suddenly forgetting his hostility towards me. "Maybe they'll be alright. But no one knows what happens when you go inside of Maxwell's Door. Maybe they went home."

"That can't be." I typically hated going against what Chester said, since it would give him and Zerp another reason to think I'm a nuisance, but facts where what we needed at the moment. "Can't you tell? Wilbur and Webber... they don't feel like outsiders. I'm thinking that they're both natives."

I waited for them to argue as always, but instead, they were silenced, looking quite thoughtful. What really made me happy though was the admiring glance that Pyrite fixed me with. "That could be a possibility," Zerp muttered.

"They also don't feel quite like natives," Chester pointed out. "Maybe from different lands? But they're definitely from this world, I think you're right about that.

"Do you think they'll go home?" Pyrite asked me, moving slightly closer to me once more.

"We can hope. But... we're not going with them. What's going to happen to us?"

"Well you can just pull your little 'I'm a lost puppy, somebody help me' skit again. You'll probably have hounds all over you. Zerp'll just go back to wherever he came from, visiting his shrine every full moon to lift the nighttime curse of darkness, Pyrite will become a murderous beast just like her ma, and I'll go back to sleep," Chester replied reasonably.

"I don't want to become a murderous beast," Pyrite whimpered. "Popsicle, please don't make me become a beast. I-I'm scared to become one."

"You won't," I cooed. "If you try to, you won't become one." Her whole body quivered and she buried her face in lava. "What was this about nighttime curse of darkness?" I tried to change the subject.

"I'm most powerful during the night of the full moon," Zerp started. "Like, _strong_ , stronger than the Night Monster magically. So, one time, I showed up during a full moon to battle the Night Monster. She was harassing the pig king. I managed to beat her back and she never messed with pigs again. Then, the pigs decided to build a shrine to me, using a thing called the 'old bell' to magically enhance it, and then it became a tradition for me to arrive at the shrine and battle back the darkness. In fact..." he almost seemed to look a bit smug. "This was around the time the Reign of Giants began."

"Reign of Giants?" I questioned. Pyrite and I exchanged a confused glance.

"Surely you know about the Reign of Giants," Chester scoffed. "When the Giants stole control of the world from Maxwell. Well, let's just say that our little buddies actually _ended_ the Reign, so that's an important part of this world's history."

"As foretold," Zerp said in a joking tone. "'The Reign of Giants will come and go, shipwrecked will he we'll never know, and finally the end of times, and inside this the fall of five.'"

"Whoa, wait what?" I felt the fur on my back stiffen, and Pyrite let out a squeak of shock. "There's a _prophecy about them?_ "

"Weeelllll, not exactly a _prophecy_..." he and Chester exchanged a glance. "But everything that happens- and is happening- was told in the Ancients thousands of years ago."

"By who?"

"The Ancient Guardian, of course. He protected them and basically everything in the world was shown to him. He is the first creature ever created in this world, and he planned everything. From the first Nightmare Captor and their Servant to the last Nightmare Captor and their Servant. And the whole thing ended with the 'fall of five'. Strange. If Webber's destined to be the Nightmare Captor, who's this 'five'? There's only four of them..."

"But there used to be five," I pointed out.

"Oh, you mean WX? No, that can't be talking about him. You know that very well, Popsicle," Pyrite butted me slightly.

 _His_ name _..._

"Oh, you look very mad again. Why did you hate him so much? Apparently he and your owner were friends even though none of us knew about that..." If anyone, _anyone_ , knew how to make me angry, it was Chester.

"I just do, okay!" Burning, I flipped around and began to stomp back towards camp. I wouldn't, _couldn't_ , forgive him.

"Wait! Popsicle!" Pyrite cried, rushing towards me as fast as she could without appendages, but I ignored her. She would probably just judge me too hard too. _She's just like them... no matter_ how _cute she is..._ I eventually broke into a run. I wanted to get as far away from them as possible. I finally reached the abandoned camp and flopped down, my head resting on my paws. Just a few moments later, Pyrite was by my side, and I risked glancing down at her. She was so much smaller than me, probably about three times smaller than I, but I knew that I would stop growing soon, when she had much more growing to do. She had turned her agitated glowing orange color, which I knew was a prominent feature that the Dragonfly probably passed down to her.

"Tell me, Popsicle," she whispered. "What's wrong with you?"

"He killed my mother," I growled, burying my face in my paws.

"Look at me. Don't refuse to meet my gaze, Pop."

I looked down at her again. "What?"

"My mother is dead too, Pop. I don't even think Chester or Zerp had parents. Besides, if your mother was still alive, would you be here now? You know that in order for your mother to survive, the others would have had to die. From what I gather about hound life, they always bring something home. They refuse to go home empty-pawed."

"You don't understand, though. My parents, they were the strongest hounds in the pack. They trained under an elite hunting group lead by the MacTusk and his son. As son of the strongest hounds, I should've been strong enough to protect her. You wouldn't know how this feels because you weren't even _hatched_ when your mother was killed." 

"My mother died _protecting_ me, Popsicle."

"So did mine!"

"At least you got to know your mother," she tipped her head, her eyes glistening and turning to a more depressing blue-green color. "Everything I've heard about the Dragonfly was that she was a powerful beast that murdered everything in her path. I never got to know her motherly side, the side of her that compelled her to give up her life to make sure I could hatch. And now I'm not even sure if I'm destined to be a murderous beast like everybody says Mom was or if there _was_ a nicer side to her that I might inherit instead."

"My Dad was killed before I was born," I spat wryly. "By a beefalo."

"I'm not even sure if I _have_ a father. You need to get out of the past, Pop. You may not have your birth family anymore, but you still have a family!"

 _Oh Pyrite, if only you knew the family I wished I had... I want to know my destiny. I want to_ choose _my destiny. I want... I want you to be my destiny Pyrite._ These of course, were words that I would never speak out loud. This, I guess, was the literal definition of 'puppy love', ha ha. "You want more... don't you, Pop?"

"I want a real family. With a mother, and a father, and siblings." _I'm far too young to be thinking any further than_ that.

She let out a purr-like noise. "Well, you're stuck with us now. Get over it." With these words, she turned and slithered back to where Zerp and Chester were still waiting. I lay back down and buried my face in my paws again, letting my grief spill over into a single, mournful howl.

 _ **?'s POV**_

 __I clenched my fists, staring angrily at the Door as they disappeared. The animals looked shocked, but I payed them little attention. I needed to find them, and soon. I knew that the longer they stayed in Maxwell's game of Chess, the more they would be willing to go on. Surely they wouldn't last very long? Some part of me didn't count on them dying any time soon. They're not so stupid.

Oh, but I could wait, and wait I shall. With another glare at the Door, I allowed the darkness to swallow me and whisk me away once more.


	75. Chapter 2 The Game is Afoot Part 1

**Chapter 2 of 5**

 **The Game is Afoot**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __We could tell before we even opened our eyes that we weren't waking up to find ourselves back in our world. The darkness pressed even further in this world. Although everyone would probably think that we're not getting anywhere, we could feel our destination getting closer. Maybe not home, but something that'll bring us much more happiness. We could almost sense the lives stretching ahead of them. But for us... The strange dark feeling lifted and we were allowed the slightest hint of reality to slip through. Freezing cold ground supported us, though we could barely move and we heard fire roaring nearby.

"What? You're still here? Impressive, but you should probably stop while you're ahead."

We heard a _fwooshing_ sound, and the last of the odd paralysis broke away, and we were able to stand up properly. Already, Wilson and Nick were looking around in dismay, while Wilbur was preoccupied picking up and dropping his limp tail.

"No... Why... I just want to go home already!" Wilson exclaimed. "Come on! How far do we have to go until Maxwell gives up?"

It was in the dead of winter. We lifted our chin slightly to take in a breath of air. Frost tinged our senses but... was that moistness ahead? "The winter will end soon," I whispered.

"When's 'soon'?" Wilson demanded.

"Um... a week at least? Fifteen days at most?" I answered honestly, and Wilson groaned. "Maybe we should just... wait it out?"

"Fifteen days of doing nothing?" Nick asked, his voice tight with disbelief. "I'm not sure that'd fly with Wilson."

"We'll do what we have to," Wilson replied grimly.

"Uh-oh. You don't look like you enjoy this very much," Wilbur commented to him, grinning as though he realized that we were the only one that could understand him.

"By the way, does _anyone_ know where to get food around here?" Wilson joked, clenching his stomach. _We're all hungry. Sorry, Wilson. We just got here. We know_ nothing _about this place._

"Carrot!" Nick suddenly exclaimed, and Wilson followed his gaze to it and unceremoniously ripped it from the ground.

We listened as hard as we could for some sort of animal for food, but only one sound came to us. _Spiders_.

 _"If you're desperate."_

 _What?_

 _"If you're desperate, you'll eat anything."_

We shivered. _Are you telling us to kill and eat spiders? That cannibalism._

A chuckle echoed in our head, but the voice did not reply. _Well, maybe they could help us find the things. Do we even need to find the things? Or is there something else?_

Cautiously, we stepped away from the group. Apparently the heat we had felt was a roaring fire, now nearly burnt to ashes, probably put there so we wouldn't freeze to death instantly. _Thanks Maxwell, you're such a card,_ I though sarcastically. Away from the heat of the others, the winter was bitingly chilling. _And this isn't even the snow._ We forced our already frozen legs to keep moving. Where spiders could survive, surely we could, too? In the distance, we saw the first silk den. Much to our surprise, it was a similar set-up to the world before. The dens spanned not quite as far as the eye could see like last time, but they were also the largest ones. The ones that housed the queens.

" _Eat,"_ whispered the spider again.

 _No._

 _"Feed. I can feel your hunger."_

 _I-I can't._

 _"Coward. Feast. Sate your hunger. How can you be a proper spider being as pathetic as yourself?"  
_

 _I'm_ not _a spider! You're the spider!_

We stopped, clutching our head in pain. Finally, the pain subsided and we blacked out.

…

Some time later, we found ourself still on the cold ground, though it felt a bit... softer. Our fur was stiff with frost, and everything was numb. We opened our eyes and felt ice crackle around our eyelids. _What... happened...?_ That's when we felt the hot, sticky liquid seeping in between our fingers and sticking to our fur.

We had apparently somehow ended up in the center of the spider dens.

And we were covered in spider blood.

Terror pounded through us, and we shot glances at all of the dens.

They were all empty.

 _Wh-what did you do!?_

 _"It was quite an improvement from last time,"_ the spider mused. _"Interesting."_

 _What did you do!?_ My mind roared.

 _"I told you I was hungry,"_ he replied innocently. _"So I decided to help myself. Quite filling, dontcha' think? You may not be easy to eat, but you are sure nice for eating."_

Our stomach felt tight. _Where are the others!?_

 _"Oh, they're fine. Wondering if you froze to death, but other than that are fine. And now, well, at least you're not hungry."_

Breaking out of our horror, we turned and fled back to the area we woke up in. Our necklace bounced against our chest, turning the string itself red, but the yellow gem seemed to repel the blood and it almost seemed to bead like mercury. _This is just a bad dream,_ I told myself fiercely. _I'm going to wake up, and none of this happened. We still have our pets. We never began to split. WX is still alive._

We knew none of this was true. However much we wished, there was absolutely no turning back. Renewed terror brought speed to our feet, and we found ourself flying past the clearing we woke up in, and we skidded to a stop just seconds before running into a tree. "Guys!" I cried. "Where are you?"

Something touched our shoulder, and we turned around, nearly hitting Wilson in the face. "Whoa, whoa, calm down! What's wrong?" He suddenly turned his gaze to our blood-soaked body.

"What the heck _happened_ to you?"

"Ugh, don't make us talk about it, please," I begged.

"You know what, I don't _want_ to know, but I have a feeling I _need_ to know."

"I saw the whole thing," Wilbur whispered in our ear. "But, I won't tell if you don't want me to."

"Actually, we'd like for you to tell us what happened. We're not even sure if you know all the words to explain to them."

"Of course I do," Wilbur exclaimed indignantly. He cleared his throat. "Webber just committed spider genocide!" He announced in perfect English.

We officially earned horrified looks from both Wilson and Nick. "You know how he is," I joked, hoping to lure them away from what he just said. "He's still learning. English- I mean. He probably didn't know that- say, that- say that, I mean. Yeah, ha ha. Cute little, monkey... thing...?" We patted his head stiffly, and he gave us the ultimate glare. "I swear, Wilbur, we're gonna tear your vocal cords out and use them as a banjo," I growled in spider to him.

"Ooh, you've been working on your threats, haven't you? I have to say, I'm really impressed." We raised our hand to give him a cuff around the muzzle, but he flinched away. "Whoa, last time you did that you knocked my tooth out. Let's not replay what happened four chapters ago, shall we?"

"Wait, what?" 

"Oh, nevermind," he waved his paw dismissively. "Don't listen to me. But can we please not abuse the ape again? I'm not made of metal, you can't whack me without actually hurting me." As soon as the words came out of his mouth, he clamped it shut and looked fearfully at us. "N-not that.. I meant... anything... about that..."

We were on the brink of committing ape genocide. "Do you want to get murdered by a spider? 'Cause that's what you're about to do." 

"No. I've killed just about every spider on the archipelago so I know how to-" he quickly threw his hands over his mouth, stopping any other thing he was about to say. "You know, you're doing that thing. You know, that thing when you change the subject because you don't want to admit something."

"Fine! We killed them. _All_ of them. But we didn't mean to. It wasn't _me_ , it was _him_!" This, however, was accidentally said in English, and both Wilson and Nick looked a bit horrified.

"Then he ate them," Wilbur added seriously.

"We really need to teach you different words," I growled, and he replied with an innocent smile, then fled before we could swipe at him. "Still learning." We blocked one side of our mouth with our hand and pointed at him with the other.

"Let's just... go. Come on."

"Um, actually," Nick stepped in the way of Wilson, who was about to walk away. "I was promised that we'd get to hang out here until winter was over."

Wilson glanced at us, examining our bloody fur once more. "Are you _sure_ that winter will end?" 

"Yes. We're sure. Well, almost sure. Like, ninety-nine percent sure. Er- maybe? Maybe more like eighty percent sure. Or actually fifty..."

"We're staying!" He exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air in frustration.

Nick pumped his fists, Wilbur looked interested and we just nodded coolly. "Sounds like a plan."

"Okay, let's set up a proper camp and hope this accursed winter is over soon."


	76. Chapter 2 The Game is Afoot Part 2

_**WARNING:**_ **A bit of suicidal comments ahead. If you are touchy about the subject, my apologies. I can summarize the chapter at the end for anyone who'd just like to skip it, because Webber get's pretty deep into it, and the chapter takes one heck of a turn to the darker side. Once again, my apologies, and if you want to skip it, I'll just stick a chapter summary at the very bottom of this one so you don't have to read through it if you're touchy this sorta thing. It's not that bad, but you know, just in case.**

 **Chapter 2 of 5**

 **The Game is Afoot**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __Nick and I exchanged a horrified look.

We had been here for about six days. Together, working every moment we could to establish a base camp, we had a fire pit and several different items that could be useful. Our only problem was food. _Well_ , Nick, Wilbur, and I had the worst problem with food.

And there was Webber, nonchalantly eating an odd purple meat.

"What _is_ that?" I asked. "It smells foul."

"Meat," he answered simply.

"What _kind_ of meat."

"The kind that comes from animals."

"What kind of animals?"

"Monsters."

I shot Nick an oh-my-God look, and he returned it. "What kind of monsters?"

"Spiders. It's really not that bad, once you get used to it."

I suddenly didn't feel hungry anymore. "You're eating _spiders?_ Your sister is a spider."

"She's a dangling depth dweller, not a surface spider."

"You're _half_ surface spider!"

"So?" He must've saw my disgusted look, because he adopted a defensive look. "Hey, spiders are natural carnivores _and_ cannibals. So don't look at us like it's weird, because it's really not."

"You'd think his human half would see past that," I whispered to Nick.

"Super hearing!" Webber reminded me loudly. "Thanks, you guys mean a lot to us. But we all know how hard it is to find food. Wouldn't it be easier if you didn't have to feed us, too?"

"Eat berries, for crying out loud!"

"Okay, we're gonna get this straightened out _right now_. We hate fruits. And vegetables. And anything in between. We put up with it when we had to, but we've had enough. We're sick of it! Meat, that's what a _real_ spider eats!"

"And other foods!" I protested. "That's what a real _human_ eats!"

"Fine!" He tossed the meat away. "Then lets discuss how we're gonna find enough proper food to feed all of us. We have a nice idea that'll give us meat for a couple of days." His hostile gaze flitted to Wilbur, who caught the look.

"Yikes!" He cried, then fled to the nearest tree, clinging to a lower branch and exclaiming random phrases in spider that I didn't care to have translated for me. This didn't do much, however, because of his useless tail dangling down close enough for Webber to grab it and yank him out of the tree. It actually shocked me that he didn't. Besides, even if he went through with his little 'threat/plan', Webber was the only one of us that wasn't battling starvation each day, so it's not like killing Wilbur would provide any food. This was not a comforting thought. For us, almost every woken moment was filled with the thoughts of food, and none of us were looking healthy. Except of course for our little cannibal.

"Besides," Webber went on suddenly. "We didn't used to be the only cannibal here. We used to have another one."

"Wait, wait what?" Nick sounded confused and slightly unnerved.

"But... only one of us... wait, WX was a cannibal?" This was completely new information to me.

"Oh, yes. Wasn't disturbed by it the slightest amount. Tiny hints here and there, but he didn't have any problem eating the gears from fellow destroyed bots from what we gathered over the two years."

"Gosh, two years," I echoed, halfway ignoring Webber. "We've been here for two years already!"

"Over," he whispered. "We- I was seven when we met each other." He gave a chuckle, completely forgetting his previous statement about his cannibalistic buddy. "I'm like, nine and a half, or over, now. We've changed quite a bit, haven't we?"

"Yeah..." I found myself desperately missing the uncomplicated days when I could just sit back and watch the two bicker about stupid things for hours. "But, I'm convinced that Nick wouldn't recognize us if we showed him how we used to act around each other." I looked up at the sun. Day seven.

"Before... before everything changed. We wish that Maxwell never tricked us into going after the giants. We can't believe we were all so stupid!"

I let out an agreeing murmur. "I wish that Maxwell never tricked us into this world in the first place."

"No," Webber disagreement startled me. "Then we wouldn't have met each other. We'd all still be lonely... lost... afraid..." He sat with a _thump_ , his face buried in his arms, which rested on his knees. "We actually used to _be_ like a normal child, you know. With a family, immature... going through the Door seemed to have changed us from that scared little spider kid into... us. We don't even remember... what it's like to actually have somebody to _love_." He let out a sorrowful laugh. "We had a crush at five. Before we were eaten, of course."

"Really?" I tried to fit the pieces of him that he was throwing out to me together. "What was her name?"

"Her name was Amy," he replied. "She was sweet, but now we realize that it was just a childish crush." He looked down into his hands, examining the black fur that now covered them, and let out a heavy sigh. "I guess you could say we've forgotten _how_ to love. It's just kind of an abstract thought now. We've forgotten... what it's like to have people care about us. You saw how that pig reacted to us. They see us as nothing but a monster, and that's all that we are on the outside. They don't... _can't_ see that we _are_ a human, with feelings and emotions. Spiders actually do have emotions, you know. They're deeper than you'd think they'd be. You're beginning to see that we _have_ a monster inside of us." He shot a disgusted look at the monster meat. "And... you know, we never told anyone but WX about this, but... he's actually breaking free of my control." He didn't look up from his hands.

"Who?" I asked, a dark hole seeming to open up in my stomach as I almost knew what he was going to say.

" _Him_ , the spider. He's actually breaking free, so... if we don't act, how you don't think we normally act..." he shivered, then finally looked back up at me. "You know, if we hurt you, _any_ of you, you have our- my- permission, to- to put us out of our misery. It'd be a mercy if you did."

"Webber, you know that none of us would-"

"Four years is a long time to be living in a spider, and it's affected us greatly, Wilson," he interrupted. "Sometimes... we wonder why both WX _and_ Wilbur failed to... you know, kill us. Everyone would probably be better off."

 _Oh no, please, please don't go with this._ "Webber, you're being ridiculous. We need you. You can't just go off and... you know, do what I have a feeling your thinking about." He dug his claws into his hands to the point of making his palms bleed. I put my arm around his shoulder, hoping to offer him some comfort. "We just wouldn't be the same without you!"

Nick's bright blue eyes were serious. "No, we wouldn't. Please don't talk like this. We understand you have problems, but you can't just run away from them by going off and getting yourself killed."

"Death is not fun," I agreed.

Webber's shoulders shook. "Thank you, guys, for trying to make us feel better. W-we just need to have some time to think."

"Of course. I wouldn't expect anything else. Just... be careful, and I hope you get yourself back on track."

He let out a tortured huff of fake laughter. "There is no track to get back on, anymore, Wilson."

 _ **A/N:**_ **Nick and Wilson were horrified to realize that Webber was actually eating spider meat, and he explained that everyone saw him as a monster, then told them about the spider breaking free of his control. He also says that if at any time he acts aggressive towards any of them, they had permission to take him out. They try to offer Webber some comfort, but he just lets it off saying he needs to 'think', and the chapter ends. Things seem to be getting a little on the deep end of the pool, eh? I don't know, I didn't even mean for things to get dark here. Hopefully some actually useful things will be done next chapter, since I can probably get out of winter. Oooh, I'm getting goosebumps I'm so excited to write these chapters! Until next time, guys!**


	77. Chapter 2 The Game is Afoot Part 3

**Chapter 2 of 5**

 **The Game Is Afoot**

 **_Webber's POV_**

 _"Hmm, how interesting. Question, though. Can you_ not _kill me?"_

 _Oh, you can see inside our shared mind. You know very well we weren't thinking what they_ thought _we were thinking._

 _"Good. I was worried you found a way to block me out. I was just going to say that since I'm kinda just a part of your mind, getting yourself killed would kill me too."_ We felt our headache grow stronger as the spider chuckled. _"Though another question. What_ were _you thinking there? Are you really surprised that they thought what they thought?"_

We mentally shrugged. _Why must you act ignorant? You are looking inside our mind right now. In reality, by we, I was talking about you. Wouldn't everyone be better off without you?_

 _"Ooh,_ someone's _being awfully mean to me. Come on, hasn't it been a good two years?"_

Four _years, Webber._

 _"Really? Gosh, these years have gone by so fast! That just shows how fun they've been."_

 _Can't you just let_ me _think? For once, let me have my mind._

 _"Bah, fine. But you had better watch what you're saying about having your mind. For the record, this is_ my _mind."_

As soon as the words echoed through our mind, the fuzziness cleared.

Did they really think that we were thinking about something like _that_? The cold had pierced through our fur long ago, but we didn't care. Snow coated our fur, turning it into snowy clumps. Our stomach felt tight. Had we really been eating _spider meat?_ It was something that never occurred to us. We never, ever, _ever,_ wanted to eat something like that. _Is he really breaking through? Why does he care about our hunger? Why would he take us over just to kill and eat other spiders?_

 _"May I intervene?"_ He suddenly asked.

 _What?_

 _"You see, I'm actually empowered by your little negative emotions. Fear, anger... hunger..."_

 _So why are you eating to stop our hunger!?_

He didn't even reply with his little dark chuckle.

We just realized that the sun had long since set, and the world was beginning to turn to night. Stretching our frozen limbs, we limped back towards our temporary camp.

"Hey, nice to see you back," Nick greeted, but we ignored him. We went straight towards the corner of the camp and buried our face in our knees, trying to block out reality.

"Whoa, what's wrong?" Wilson asked, and we felt him rest his hand on our shoulder. "You're absolutely freezing. Why did you stay out so long that you would freeze?"

"We were thinking," I mumbled.

His muscles seemed to tighten, and we looked up at him. His gray eyes were serious. "And... what did you decide?"

"Oh, stop being so worried. We weren't thinking anything like that. There was... someone else... that we were talking about."

"Wh-uh... oh. Are you talking about... _him_?"

"Yeah... we didn't get very far, though. So anyway, how's life treating you guys?"

"Fine, fine," Wilbur responded, completely ignoring Wilson and Nick. "But not as well as it seems to be treating you. That was sarcasm, by the way. Heavy sarcasm."

"Thanks, Wilbur. You're a card. Anyway, what's our plan? You know, once winter's over?"

"I think we should split up to find the things," Nick said at the same time as Wilson said:

"We need to stick together for one." They gave each other strange looks.

"Splitting up will be quicker," Nick pointed out.

"But there's only one divining rod," Wilson argued.

"We think Nick's right," I told him sheepishly. "Typically, we don't like going against you guys, but since you two are apparently both trying to take charge, we thought we should say something. We know the general directions they are." We motioned to the land bridges in the distance, barely visible since they were shrouded by soon-to-be-early-morning fog. "It'd be much quicker just to each go our own direction. Besides, one of the bridges is a spider choke point. And we're _not_ letting _anyone_ through that like last time."

"It wasn't _that_ bad," Wilbur protested. "I only had my tail paralyzed!"

"And a compound rib fracture, which nobody knew was even possible, and your leg was smashed, and-"

"All right, all right, I get it. But just so you know, none of that was too bad." He waved his paw over his healing chest wound and nearly fixed leg.

"Your jaw's still a little crooked," I reminded him.

"A little!" He exclaimed. "For crying out loud, no one would notice how little it's crooked but you, my arachnoid friend."

"You know," Wilson suddenly butt in. "It's actually not that cold, for-for winter, I mean."

The sun was already lightening up the sky to be a light blue color, golden and pink fingers stretching over it. "You think we could go out?"

"We should," Nick nodded.

Oddly enough, the winter _had_ become much more bearable. No one had realized this before because of how everyone huddled around the fire. _Why was it so cold when we left, then?_

 _Because we're used to having others around now._

This was an odd feeling. For the two years after we were eaten, we had gotten used to the feeling of being alone. Cast out by humans and spiders alike, we had no one. What proper spider colony would take in a spider that was half human? What proper family would take in a human that was half spider? But somehow we ended up with three others who didn't care about that. They actually looked beneath our fur to realize that we were a human inside just like them. These guys, _these guys_ , were our family. However mixed and odd they may be, they were our family. A prime ape, a scientist, the Power Keeper, and a spider. _Day eight._

"So does that mean we're splitting up now?" I asked.

"Is it too cold?" Wilson, much to out surprise, looked towards Nick. _So he's not even going to try to fight for the leadership position. He's just going to give it up to Nick? Odd, but interesting._

Nick seemed more than happy to take the role. "Yep. Everyone pick a direction!" He grinned.

"Spiders," I volunteered instantly. "We're the only one that go through that without problem."

"Oooh, because of Ariana if you have problems, right?" Wilbur whispered to us.

"No!" I spat, relieved at the fact he at least had the decency to say it in spider. "She's back in the other world."

"D'aw, you miss her, don't you?" He snickered.

"No, just... no."

"Oooh, romantic. Adorable, absolutely adorable." He smiled, then took off running the opposite direction that the spider dens lay before he could receive his muzzle bop. We took a step towards him, then sighed and decided not to. Ariana was so... awkward. And we still did not know what 'tsundere' meant. Yet Wilbur refused to answer, and whenever we asked him about it, he would just burst out laughing and walk away. He was so frustrating.

We turned, burning inside so much that we didn't even pay any attention to the cold that was already nipping at our fingers and toes. Wilson had the rod, because he was the most likely to get himself lost. Nick, in our eyes, was a close second.

 _"Ooh,_ someone's _been a bit annoyed. You could always kill him. Haha, just kidding. Evil nightmare spider, right?"_

 _The reference isn't funny._

 _"Oh, you are_ no _fun at all! All matters aside, I'm quite impressed on how you managed to get that reference."_

 _We didn't. It sounded like a reference to something._

 _"That makes more sense. Okay."_ Something about the spider, though, seemed... off. He wasn't this evil, dark spider at the moment. He was more... childlike and messing around. _"You know, these past four years have really changed us, haven't they? We used to be enemies, but now I almost see us as friends."_

 _I don't see you as a friend._

 _"Well, a one-sided relationship is better than no relationship at all, hmm?"_

 _Go away._

A dark wall crashed over our vision, and we stumbled. _"Oh, I don't think I'll be doing_ that _for quite a while. We still have roughly seventy years to play. And we're going to be playing_ my _game."_


	78. Chapter 2 The Game is Afoot Part 4

_**A/N:**_ **UGH, WRITER'S BLOCK SUUUUUUCCCCKKKKKSSSS! Well, not exactly writer's block, but I'm trying to figure out how to write certain chapters, so they are very skippy and not organized. Apologies.**

 **Chapter 2 of 5**

 **The Game is Afoot**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __ _Why didn't Wilbur or Webber take the rod?_ I wondered, listening as hard as I could for any beeping signals. _They would be able to hear it getting higher eons before I can. Let's just hope everyone else is able to find things. I don't doubt for a moment that Wilbur and our little cannibal are going to find things._

It actually felt more like a contest than survival at this point.

 _Well, except for Webber, maybe. Man, what_ was _he doing yesterday? Was he_ trying _to get himself frozen? That doesn't sound like him. Admitting defeat like this? He would_ never _had done that. He must be super worried about something. What does he see...?_ I had found out a long time ago that the nine-year old knew _much_ more than he should. How did he know how to build the Teleportato? How did he even know that that was what it was called? And then Wilbur living in the Ancients? These were all pieces to what I believed was a large puzzle, and they were beginning to form a terrible picture.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Thinking about Webber and Wilbur wouldn't get me anywhere. I glared at frustration at the diving rod. "Why won't you do anything?" I demanded. And now here I was, yelling at an inanimate object that very obviously wasn't going to reply. I wasn't sure what was making me more insane: The darkness that only getting closer or the idiots I was stuck with.

With a heavy sigh, I swung the rod like a sword. Not like it was going to help much. Like Webber said, I had bad hearing compared to him and Wilbur. Well, to quote I had 'loser' hearing. Despite my frustration, I found amusement that Wilbur's personality was beginning to rub off of this child. He really needed someone to show him that he needed to be a child when he had the chance.

The monotone beeping from the rod seemed to be mocking me. Okay fine, I never acted like a kid. Even when I was young, I purposely tried to act as serious as possible. I also always wanted to be a scientist, and scientists _had_ to be serious. Not _once_ had I ever seen Webber showing any interest in taking any sort of career. Of course, not that he was ever going to be _able_ to pursue a life outside of this world.

Wait.

I stood completely still. Did the rod just get higher? _Vwoom._ The noise was definitely higher pitched that time. Moving a bit faster in pure excitement, I rushed forward and over a hill covered with slippery slush as the ice began to melt. Before I knew what was happening, I slipped and tumbled back down the hill, pain shooting through my ankle and becoming positively freezing and soaked. I sat on the ground for a few moments, temporarily blinded by pain, before the redness around my vision cleared and the pain subsided. I tested my weight on my hurt ankle and was realized to find that it didn't hurt anymore. _Last thing we need is for me to get hurt. I need to be more careful._

Slowly, more carefully, I picked my way up the hill, trying not to hurt myself for real this time. Finally, I reached the top and looked over in despair at the sight that greeted me. It was a swathe of rocky terrain covering a bridge. The bridge was in an odd spiral shape, and dotted with gold-veined boulders. Among the boulders nested dozens of what basically was an eyeball with tiny black wings sprouting out of it and two long legs curled neatly under it. The tallbirds were all asleep. I blinked up at the sky, the sun beginning to set. I should probably make a base soon. But the tallbird bridge... I took a deep breath and crossed my fingers, then sprinted through it as fast as I could. Behind me, odd sounding cries announced that my hasty movement was waking all of the tallbirds. Right next to me a beak landed just inches away from my arm with a hollow _thunk_. "Hey! Watch it you oversized eyeball on legs!" I snapped at it without stopping. It's reply was to try to peck me again, though this time it scratched my arm.

Slightly concerned, I stole a glance at the wound. A tiny bead of blood was welling up on it, but it was a mere scratch. "Ouch! That _hurt_!" With a hint of annoyance, I slid to a stop to swing my spear at its legs. The blow landed right behind the bend of its legs. With a sharp cry of shock, the massive bird fell over. Seeing my chance, I turned again and ran again. In the corner of my vision, I spotted a blue and white speckled egg in a nest, another bird sleeping nearby. Although my mind screamed against it, my stomach forced me to stop again and I eyed the egg, my mouth watering. It was a dangerous situation, but... the egg, standing straight up, was as high as my knees. Something that big could feed me for a few days at least. Were there others? Maybe we could come here for food. Now that I was looking, I realized almost every nest had another large egg nested in it. We could live off of these until we left this world.

I just had to get past the tallbirds first.

Risk getting hurt or more likely killed, but finally be able to fill my- and the other's- starving bellies?

Or play it safe and let starvation get us first?

My growling stomach was what decided it for me.

Willing myself to not make any noise, I moved a bit into the grassland beyond and dropped the rod, then I tiptoed back towards the first egg I spotted. How in the world I was going to get more than one was beyond me, but at the moment, my vision blurred around everything but the blue egg. _One step at a time, Wilson. Don't get ahead of yourself._ My gaze drifted to the tallbird sleeping in a tiny black ball next to the nest. _Killing the mother would not only save me that risk, but it could also give a bit of meat._ At this time, I was debating whether to choose the same source of food as Webber, since he actually didn't look _that_ bad compared to Nick, Wilbur, and I. Being able to eat _real_ meat made my mouth water again. I looked back, and realized that the one I had attack had opted to curl up in a ball were it lay instead of trying to get its shaky legs to move. One less one to worry about, at least. With a deep breath, I turned to the bird and stabbed the spear into its closed eye. As though by instinct, it kicked out one leg so fast that I didn't have time to dodge, and the blow landed right under my ribs, effectively pushing me back and knocking the wind from me. Hunger had weakened me, I realized, because an attack like that shouldn't have hurt like that. I tried to take another breath in as the tallbird was fully awakened and reared to peck me, but a sharp pain cracked through the lower half of my chest. _There's no bone to break, though..._

I raised my spear to block the attack, but the bird's peck sent it flying in the opposite direction. Finally giving up on killing the bird, I snatched the egg and ran. It was surprisingly light, and I realized I hardly had to use muscle at all to lift it. _Good thing, too. If this was heavy, I probably wouldn't be able to carry it._ Of course, the mother wasn't going to let me take the egg without a fight. I found myself out of breath a lot quicker than I would've liked to, and I was just beginning to flag when the bird let out a last chirp and made its way back to it's nest. I put the egg gently on the ground. "Stay there," I told it, turning back to grab my rod.

The silent stillness of the egg seemed to say 'like I'm going anywhere anytime soon'.

Cursing myself for, once again, talking to an inanimate object, I grabbed the divining rod and found the egg again. Feeling proud of myself for managing to grab it, I smashed a small hole on top with the bottom of the rod, only to find that it was almost completely hollow. Only a little bit of edible food was inside, and I couldn't help but bury my face in my hands. Being hungry was one of the worst feelings in the world, and it was only worse when you _knew_ that there was no way to get food.

But for something so large to have such little food was an insult. But it _was_ food... not managing to stop myself, I drank up the contents of the egg with gusto, but it was empty far too soon.

"Okay," I whispered to myself. "At least I have enough to keep going." Allowing myself to fall into the rhythm of the _vwoom_ ing of the divining rod, I continued to march forward. "I _must_ be getting near." Finally, the rod going wild, I spotted the gleam of shiny black, and I rushed over to the ring thing and held it gratefully. I found it, and I didn't die on the way. As soon as I picked it up, the rod fell near silent again, and I turned around to make my way back to camp. The night had fully fallen, and I was forced to craft a torch and stick it in the ground, relishing the faint waves of warmth wafting from the torch as I was making a proper fire to sit out the night. I looked forward, straining to see in the pure darkness, but the fire still did not provide enough light to see. I fiddled with the fire, wishing all night that I had something to cook over it. Once the sun had finally risen once more, I found myself hurrying through the tallbird's camp without stopping, and ran as fast as I could with my low stamina back to where we split up.

" _So... so you think you can tell..."_

I slowed down. Was that a voice?

 _"Heaven from Hell..."_

That wasn't a voice, that was singing.

 _"Blue skies from pain..._

 _Can you tell a green field-_

 _From a cold steel rail?_

 _A smile from a veil?_

 _Do you think you can tell?"_

Shock shot through me. Who was that? Whoever it was, they had their heart in what they were singing.

 _"Did they get you to trade-_

 _Your heroes from ghosts?_

 _Hot ashes for trees?_

 _Hot air for a cool breeze?_

 _Cold comfort for change?_

 _Did you exchange..._

 _A walk on part in the war..._

 _for a lead role in a cage...?"_

A short silence followed, and I found myself completely still as I waited for what was coming next.

 _"How I wish... how I wish you were here..._

 _We're just-_

 _two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl._

 _Year after year..._

 _Running over the same old ground..._

 _What have we found...?_

 _Same old fears..._

 _Wish you were here..."_

It seemed like a million years before I finally managed to make my paralyzed legs move. What did I just hear?The sorrow... when I finally got back to the place we split up, the only one back was Nick. _It_ definitely _wasn't Nick who sang that_.

"Did you hear that?" I asked.

Nick held his finger to his mouth in _shhhhing_ gesture, and he pointed forward. I walked towards him to see what he was watching. It was Webber, sitting on a rock in the forest beyond. His eyes were closed, and his chin tipped upwards. 'What is he doing?' I mouthed.

He shrugged. 'Sitting,' he replied. Next to him was the box thing, and Nick was sitting by the crank thing. How in the world they found the things without the rod was beyond me. It wasn't until Wilbur came barreling back into the camp with the metal potato thing about half an hour later that Webber realized we were there, and he jumped.

"How long have you guys been there!?" He demanded.

"Not long," I lied. "Why?"

He looked down at his hands, letting out a small chuckle. "Come on. Lets go find the Teleportato."


	79. Chapter 2 The Game is Afoot Part 5

_**A/N:**_ **I forgot to mention last chapter, but as of the 30** **th** **, this story has been on for a whole year. Everyone's support for this story is the only reason why I have gotten this far at all. Thank you all very much, and I look forward to your continued support and reading for what lies ahead.**

 **As always** _ **italicized**_ **is thoughts.**

 _ **"Italicized with quotation marks" Is the spider speaking.**_

 _ **(Italicized with parenthesis) is a mini flashback.**_

 **Chapter 2 of 5**

 **The Game is Afoot**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

We relished the cold silence that seemed to unfold around us while the others were gone. The words rang in the still dawn air, and we raised our chin to the rising sun. We weren't sure how long we stayed in this position, but we were alerted by the sound of crunching leaves and footsteps as Wilbur barreled into the meeting area. Our heart sank. Both Wilson and Nick were already there, and we could tell they had been there a fairly long time by how they were sitting. _Did they hear?_

"How long have you guys been there!?" I demanded.

"Not long," Wilson replied smoothly. _Oh, Wilson, you know we can see right through you and your little lies._ "Why?"

We looked down at our hands. The fur was still stained at the roots from what the spider had done when we first arrived. "Come on," I sighed, knowing with a sinking feeling that they heard. "Lets go find the Teleportato."

"How did you find the thing so fast?" Wilson asked. "You know, without the divining rod?"

"Spiders," I answered instantly. _Okay, we didn't exactly ask nicely, but it was still spiders._

 _("Okay, come out you little worms! Listen up here, if you don't tell us where the thing is- well, you don't wanna know what'll happen to you, but think of it this way. It starts with 'd' and ends with epth worm. Hope you're good at trivia!")_

They were pretty willing to give it up after that.

 _"Didn't I tell you threats work better than asking nicely? Don't we work splendidly as a team?"_

 _You were right_ one time _. That does_ not _mean that we are a 'team'._

 _"Did you_ try _to reason with them?"_

 _...yes..._

 _"And...?"_

 _("Just a nice friendly spider-to-spider question. Does anyone know where the thing is?")_

 _They attacked us..._

 _"Go on."_

 _And... didn't give us the thing..._

 _"When did they give us the thing?"_

 _When we threatened them. Fine. Human: 0 Spider: 1. Happy now?_

 _"Oh, I think the score would be higher than that, but never mind. I'm glad you are beginning to see my way."_

Against our will, a deep rumbling noise throbbed in our throat.

Wilson stared at us, confused. "What _is_ that noise you are making?"

"It sounds like a cat," Nick commented.

"Oh my gosh, this is adorable," Wilbur laughed, jumping up on our shoulders, accidentally whipping our back with his limp tail. "You're _purring_. I knew spiders could purr, but that's a noise that I never thought I'd hear from _you_. Hey guys, Mr. Negative over here is _purring_."

"Shut up!" I snapped, trying to choke it back. It wasn't me purring, it was him.

"Spiders can purr?" Nick asked, while Wilson buried his face in his hands as though trying to hide a smile.

"I'm sorry, I know you'll hate this, but that is actually kind of adorable."

"I know, right!?"

"You all deserve whacks, you know that? We're supposed to be finding the wooden thing, not tormenting poor Webber for being half spider and having all of the perks of being a spider," I growled.

"It's just like a little sharkitten! No _wonder_ Tiger Lily didn't eat you. She can't eat anything that reminds her of her sharkittens!"

"We've never purred before!" I spat, relieved to find that it was beginning to fade away.

"You're just big, fluffy..."

"Don't say it..."

"Purr-ball!" Wilbur giggled.

We clenched our fists, fighting the instinct to hit the obnoxious prime ape. "Fine, stay here, we don't care. Stay here and laugh about the fact that a spider can purr. We're going to go out and find the Teleportato because _you guys obviously aren't going to_."

"Sorry, I'm so sorry," Wilson was obviously hiding another fit of laughter. "It's just something I never expected to hear from you. You're kind of, um, how do I say this? You're kind of too prickly to be making a noise quite like that."

"And the next noise we'll make like that will be a growl, because, news-flash, just in case you guys didn't know, spiders can growl too. And bite. Spiders are good biters. You all deserve a bite right now." We turned to do exactly what we said we were going to do. "If you are all prepared to act your age, come on. If not, you can join Wilbur in the I'm-too-ignorant-to-do-much-more-than-tease-others corner."

"I'm not ignorant," Wilbur protested. "You've seen how fast I've caught on to English."

"You know the Ancient language, right?"

"Duh."

"Then of course learning English wouldn't be hard for you." We threw the words over our shoulders as we stalked off.

"Hey, you have no right to accuse _us_ of not acting out age," Wilson pointed out. "Compared to you, we act much closer to our age."

"Goodbye!"

"Wait for us!" Nick called, hurrying to follow us with Wilson right behind him.

"Alright, alright I'm coming. Just give me a second," Wilbur told us, trying to actually get a hold of his laughter.

 _Did you really have to do that?_

 _"I'm sorry. I was happy. I'm sad now though, because you're not happy as well. Our feelings come together and blend you know."  
_

 _Good._

 _"No wonder nobody likes you._ I _don't even like you, and I'm half of you. You really need to control your temper."_

My _temper!?_ I roared at it. You're _the one that has a temper._

 _"Not even that trustful_ monkey _likes or trusts you. We've been together for four years, almost five. Can't you see that I'm the only one you have?"_

 _I'd rather be alone._

 _"You are alone."_

Even though we had to go as far as block out our own subconscious, we refused to hear any more of what the spider had to say.

"Has it gotten higher?" Wilson whispered.

 _Did he sound careful around us? What is he thinking? Does he realize we are a spider that is beginning to think like a spider and talk like a spider and act like a-_ "A little bit," I murmured, eyes half-closed.

He tipped his head. "Are you alri-" His words were cut off as sudden blackness swam in our vision, and just a second later, we felt the ground against our fur, chilling it but otherwise, doing nothing.

…

Groggily, we opened our eyes. "Oh, you're okay," Wilson breathed in relief.

"What the heck happened!?" Nick demanded. "You just fell!"

Oddly enough, it wasn't the images that came to our vision, but the voices. _"Well, that was unexpected, even for me."_

"Um, _are_ you okay?" Wilson amended.

Finally, pictures began to form, and we looked around. We were still in the same area we were before. "How long have we been out?"

"Only for a few minutes," he replied. "What happened?"

 _Well?_

 _"I'm checking, hold on a second."_

"Sorry, we were just _so_ tired," I joked, but he did not look amused.

"This isn't normal, you know. Kids your age shouldn't be having problems like this."

 _"So, apparently something... blocked the signals from your brain for a few moments?"_

 _Any idea what?_

 _"Still trying to figure that one out. This is kind of like hacking a computer, so it can be a bit difficult."_

 _How would you know about hacking a computer?_

 _"I had a life before you appeared, you know."_

"Yeah, but look at what we are. You can hardly call us a 'kid'," I pointed out, trying not to be unsettled by the data mining that the spider was currently doing. "Come on, we can keep going." Our whole body felt like it was asleep, and we really needed to get moving.

"Are you absolutely sure?"

 _"I can't find anything. Maybe I should keep a tighter watch and see if we can catch it next time?"_

 _Hopefully there won't_ be _a next time._ He was very confusing. Sometimes, he was friendly and helpful, but other times, he seemed to be meaner, more evil. It seemed to be his friendly and helpful side today.

 _"Cross your fingers, kid."_

"Yeah, yeah we're sure." We struggled to our feet, stumbling as though we hadn't walked for several days and a dizzying red coming over our vision for a few minutes as blood rushed through our body. Beside us, Wilson supported us with one shoulder. "Just a bit... dizzy, from getting up so soon."

"Now, back to the question: What happened?"

"Neither of us know," I murmured. "Seriously, both of us were trying to figure out, but neither of us know."

Wilson suddenly snapped away from us. "You can communicate with him?"

 _"I take offense to that."_

"Kind of? He's... kind of hard to predict."

 _"I take even_ more _offense to that."_

"What do you mean, 'hard to predict'?"

"Sometimes he's mean, other times he... only seems to want what's best for us."

"So, what a minute," Nick cut in. "You're telling us that... who, exactly, can speak to you?"

"Our... spider... half."

 _"I love how you act so nervous talking about me."_

"Oh my gosh, that is... kind of freaky, actually," Wilbur commented. He still didn't exactly look disturbed. In fact, he still had his typical content expression.

 _Man, he's annoying._

 _"There is_ nothing _freaky about me,"_ he protested. _"It's not_ my _fault that_ someone _likes to make me look a lot worse than I really am."_

 _Then maybe you should stop trying to commit random spider genocide?_

 _"That was_ one _time."_

We mentally sighed. _Do you know where the thing is?_

 _"As part of you, you should know the answer to that question."_

 _Of course you don't._

"Are you going to be okay now?" Wilson asked cautiously.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go." _Try to see what you can do to stop that next time._

 _"I might have to take over for a few minutes, and both of us know how little you like it when I do that."_

 _So long as you don't say or do anything stupid. I just don't want them to worry._

Stumbling forward, we beckoned towards the others. _"_ The rod was getting higher this way." Little by little, we managed to regain our balance. "Whatever that was, it's gone now," I lied. Still eyeing us uncertainly, Nick and Wilson began to follow us. Wilbur still seemed happily unaware of any problem. "Can you here it?" I whispered to them.

"I can," Wilbur murmured.

"Starting to," Nick replied. "Wait, we're listening for the higher beeps, right?"

We reached forward and grabbed each of the things from the other's grips, then, without waiting, began to run ahead. _"Why the rush?"_

 _I need the Teleportato._

 _"Oh, I see now. Ugh, whatever that is, it's not very nice."_

We nearly ran into the wooden thing, but stopped just in time and leaned heavily on it. The dizzy feeling subsided and we once more felt the strange pull on our hands that told us how to rebuild it. The others had just gotten to us when it was finished, and we fell again before the hands could even drag us into the ground. _"Oh, this can't be good."_

 _You're telling us..._


	80. Chapter 70 Breaking Point

_**Popsicle's POV**_

 __"Watch out!" I yelped in terror as I jumped up from my sleep, heart pounding, in attack position.

For a few seconds, everything was enveloped in a red haze, and I hardly registered as Chester jumped up, his eyebone glaring at me and Zerp cried out in shock. It wasn't until a certain lavae pressed against me, her eyes wide, that I realized it had been a dream.

"What happened?" Pyrite asked.

Still shaking, I let myself fall down, burying my face in my paws. "I-I don't know. Something... something horrible... and we... you..." I whimpered. "I don't know..."

"You could've at least had your nightmares in silence!" Chester protested. "Don't wake us up because you are scared of something that probably doesn't mean anything."

"How in the world did that wake you up if Zerp's snoring doesn't?"

"I don't snore!" The glommer exclaimed, bristling.

"Right, right, you just zerp all night. I'm so _sick_ of being kept awake by _zerp, Azerwezerp_ when you're awake and doing _whatever_ glommers do!"

"I stay up, on the night of the full moon it is a _tradition_ , _Popsicle_."

"Why does it sound like you two are making fun of each other's names?" Chester wondered out loud.

"Because I am tired, and I can't sleep when a certain little baby ice hound puppy decides to whine all night."

"Stop messing with him, Zerp," Pyrite growled, turning her agitated, glowing orange color.

" _zerp_ ," I taunted. " _zeeeerrrrrrp._ "

"At least I'm not in love with a baby dragonfly, Popsicle," he retorted.

Shocked, I yelped once more. "How _dare_ you! I would _never_!" _How did he know?_ My mind roared in horror.

"Both of you, fighting isn't going to get us anywhere," Chester tried to reason. "Let's just all go back to sleep."

Snarling, I bunched my muscles into an offensive crouch. I knew what ice hounds looked like when they were like this, and I knew exactly how terrifying it was. I was terribly glad I was never the one that they would growl at.

"Careful, don't start something," Pyrite warned.

Without listening to her, I launched myself at him, burying my teeth in his side. He let out a cry of shock and pain. "Why you _little_ ," he roared. He try to rise, but I kept him down with my greater weight. I shook my head from side to side wildly like I was playing with a toy.

Something butted into my side, too small to move me, but big enough for me to release my grip in surprise. "I said 'don't start something'!" The lavae cried.

I glared at the glommer. The bite wasn't even a bleeding wound. Despite being an ice hound, I burned on the inside. "That was _uncalled for_ ," Chester spat.

"One more word, _Chest_ er-" I was cut off as Pyrite butted me again, glaring at me.

 _Aw, shoot. There goes my chances. Good going, Popsicle_. Still growling, I backed away, my nose touching the ground in submission.

"Hey, ow, you left something," Zerp said as though he wasn't just used as a chew toy. "What _is_ that?" He lowered himself to the ground, trying to look at it.

Chester bounced over and ripped a small, pearly white object out of the mark, a small spurt of blood following it. "Hey, not bad for a puppy tooth."

Trying my best not to further anger Pyrite, I even went so far as to roll onto my back and show my stomach, the ultimate sign of submission. It was official. I had actually let my rival become the alpha. "Excellent," Zerp purred. "But of course, you know what happens to the previous alpha when a new one takes charge, right?"

I stiffened, but stayed in my pose. Of course I knew. Every hound had that lesson pounded into their heads since the moment there we born. Every defeated alpha would be branded, so everyone would know that he had failed. "Don't hurt him!" Pyrite demanded.

Zerp looked at her, disgust flashing in his eyes at the tiny lavae that defied him. "Chester. The tooth, please."

The pumpkin creature dropped the tooth on the ground.

"No, the _other_ tooth."

Looking confused for a moment, then realization flashing in his eyebone, Chester grabbed a different tooth that had fallen, then slid it towards the glommer. "I've always wondered what would happen when you cut an ice hound with a lavae tooth..." He said enthusiastically.

I stayed in the submissive position.

The very second the tooth touched the fleshy part of my stomach, I flipped back onto my feet, grabbing the tooth and throwing it towards Pyrite, then launching myself towards Zerp, once more latching onto his side.

But this time, Pyrite didn't stop me. "You think I'd ever submit to you?" I growled.

"No, but you'll submit to _me_ ," another voice growled, and something sharp was stabbed into my back.

"You don't have natural weapons!" I snarled, flipping on my back long enough to squash Chester, then took off running in one direction. Pyrite rushed to join me, but was promptly cut off by Chester. She looked at me, her eyes wide with fear, before the pumpkin began to move her back. "Get away from her!" Flipping around so fast I threw up a cloud of dust, I clamped down on Chester's upper jaw, throwing him away and towards Zerp. Seeing my chance, I nudged Pyrite onto my back as quick as I could and took off running again.

"I can run you know!" she retorted, though she clung to my fur as though she was terrified of falling.

"Okay, Ms. No-Legs, I'd love to see you run!" I panted. "Okay, we're safe." I skidded to a stop, padding slowly forward to peer into one of the holes that filled the mountain near our base. I nudged her in it and followed myself, dodging my way into the darkness. I could never understand why the humans were afraid of the dark like they were.

"You're hurt," Pyrite murmured, letting off enough light to see. Hot, sticky blood was running down my side.

"I'm fine. Just tired."

"And what Zerp said back there... was that true?"

"Was what true?"

"He said 'At least I'm not in love with a baby Dragonfly'. Was he telling the truth?"

 _Here it is. Tell her the truth..._

 _Or lie some more._

I took a deep breath, and locked gazes with her. "No. No he wasn't."


	81. Chapter 3 The King of Winter Part 1

**Chapter 3 of 5**

 **The King of Winter**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

 __ _Winter. Interesting choice._

 _No, not just winter,_ I thought, sniffing the air without opening my eyes. _Endless winter..._

"Say, pal. You're really pushing your luck. Turn back now, or I may have to resort to drastic measures."

I blinked awake, looking around for everyone else. Wilson was rubbing his head, muttering to himself, and Nick was just beginning to stir. I spotted Webber last, because he wasn't even stirring. I glanced at Wilson in alarm, who had just noticed as well. "Are you okay?" He asked, shaking the child, trying to wake him up.

"No, go away Wilson," he muttered, throwing his arm over his face.

"Webber wake up. We're in another world. Get up." I pushed the scientist out of the way, grabbed Webber's arm,, and tried pulling him to his feet, even going bipedal for a moment to try to move him.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open and he jumped to his feet. "What happened? What did we miss?"

"Calm down! You didn't miss anything. We're just... trying to figure out what's next, that's all."

He blinked a few times as though still trying to get his bearings, then seemed to relax. "Okay then. So... what's next?"

"Same as always, I guess. Find the things and get out of here," Wilson let out a nervous laugh.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Wilson. Webber, do you smell any... not... winter?" I looked at the spider, hoping to get him back to himself.

He shook his head. "Sorry. The air is stiff with frost. It's cold..."

Around us, snow had already begun to fall. "An endless winter? Ha!" I jumped up on Wilson's shoulders. "I am the king! I am the king of winter! Mwuhahahaha!"

I was roughly shoved off. "This isn't the time for any of your games, Wilbur!" He snapped.

"It's not a game!" I protested. "It is a simple fact. It is obvious that I am the only one fit for this weather."

"For crying out loud- I hope you know we have thicker fur than you do, Wilbur," Webber sounded exasperated.

"Yeah, but _I_ have the crown." I neatly dodged a muzzle thwap from the spider. "I'm getting better."

"Anyway!" Nick barked. "Five things! Are we going to find them?" 

"Better idea," Wilson suggested through chattering teeth. "How about we find a way to warm up?"

"You're already cold?" I asked in disbelief. "Humans, am I right, Webber?" I nudged the spider lightly.

He stared at me, dumbfounded for a second, then looked away. "You know, you and WX would've gotten along great," he chuckled.

"No they wouldn't," Wilson smiled. "But of course, isn't that exactly how you two got along?" He turned his smile to Webber, who's lack of response made him drop his gaze.

"New subject, it's very cold," I informed them all.

"Thanks, we... kinda figured that out already."

I blinked at them, feeling a tinge of shock at how fast the freezing weather was setting in. _Man, even Webber looks cold, and he's furrier than they are. Man, I'm glad I'm an APE and not a human or other non-furry creature._

"So, am I supposed to... like... get wood or something... since... I'm not cold, yet?" I examined their expressions.

"Wood?" Wilson echoed. "Well, if you think you could handle it-"

"Of course I can," I butted in hotly. "May I remind you of how I have lived by myself my whole life?"

"Because you killed them all," Webber reminded me curtly.

"Yep! In the good old days..." I winked at him. "How do you think my English is doing, huh?"

"I'm surprised you can speak full sentences," Wilson replied immediately.

"It's useful," Nick added thoughtfully.

I attempted to wave my tail in farewell, then remembered sharply of it's paralysis and my usually eternal state of happiness and excitement faltered for just a moment, a moment so quick I wondered if it existed at all.

 _I have nothing to cut down trees with,_ I thought, then shrugged. _I'll punch 'em! Hehe, I could probably take a tree down, but I would get a couple of splinters, and I'd hate to hurt myself, not that it'd do anything._ I found Wilson and Nick's amazement in my recovery quite amusing, and it'd only give me something more to laugh at. _Start with the wood._ I snapped myself back to attention. _Find fallen limbs. Everyone are wimps and don't know the meaning of cold._ "And if you get cold, at least you have your paper to keep you warm!" Webber called to me.

 _Ugh, how many times do I have to say it is not_ paper _._ I looked down at the dark armor that protected me. _Of course they'd just see paper_. The filmy black substance didn't seem to be seen by anyone other than me. I grabbed my beloved dark sword, feeling in glee at the dark power thrumming through it. Back when I had first started working with Maxwell, he had gifted me the items, explaining that he no longer needed them. Not that anyone else realized they existed. _Poor fools, under the trick of old Maxwell._ I blinked up at a tree I nearly had walked into. A few loose limbs were caught up in the higher branches. I bunched my leg muscles, preparing to climb, but stopped myself just before doing so, remembering with a pang my paralyzed tail. Feeling low for a second, I slunk away. Then I laughed a bit at my self-pity. Even with a paralyzed tail, I was still the best. If anyone be thinking about my position, it should be others, looking up at me and all my glory. 'Cause that's just who I am.

Wilbur, the just plain awesome.

And something as silly as a useless tail wasn't going to change that.

I leaped up to grab a small twig from an overhanging limb, when suddenly a pang of cold shot through my whole body, and I shivered. _Fire_ , I reminded myself sharply. _We need wood for fire._ Ignoring Wilson's previous demand, I scrambled up a tree to find the thinner, less attached limbs, which could be broken with the sword. Grinning madly, I raised my sword like an ax and set to work taking them down.

 _ **A/N:**_ **Ugh! Boring filler chapter AND writer's block? No! The** **snow** **must go on!**

 **Hehe.**

 **Hehe.**

 **I'll shut up now.**


	82. Chapter 3 The King of Winter Part 2

**Chapter 3 of 5**

 **The King of Winter**

 _ **A/N:**_ **Why do I only feel comfortable writing as Webber nowadays? I'm so very sorry about that, it seems that he is the only character I can write with without getting stuck with writer's block.**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __ _"Hum-dee-dum. I'm not sure if you knew this, but it is_ very _cold."_

 _Gee, thanks, I had no clue._

We sighed, looking around the fire. It was roaring with heat, but it wasn't warm enough. From where we stood, the cold still wreathed around us. If we tried to move closer, then all we would receive would be charred fur, which wasn't a pleasant feeling nor smell. The others were asleep, but we could not drift off.

 _"Probably because of all the sleeping you've been doing while everyone else was awake,"_ he teased playfully.

 _Have I thanked you yet for covering me?_

 _"Several times, old pal,"_ he purred. _"You haven't thanked your monkey friend for bringing wood back, though."_

 _First off, he's an ape. Second off, since when did you care about his feelings?_

 _"The second you did. Didn't I tell you our emotions bleed together into one?"_

 _That's actually... interesting._

 _"Isn't it?"_

The bitter winter night seemed to last an eternity, but finally we spotted the weak, early morning sun's rays over the distant horizon. _I miss..._ my thoughts began, but were abruptly cut off.

 _"What's wrong? I hate this feeling of doubt."_ He didn't even give time to answer before he let out a gently crooning noise. _"You and me both."_

 _What are you talking about? I... didn't say anything._

It was comforting, actually. It seemed quiet when nighttime hit, and, if we were honest with ourself, having somebody who we couldn't hide anything from, and we knew everything about was a relief when we needed to confide in someone. But it could get annoying, especially when he was prying around every private thought we had. A vibrating purr rose up in our throat. _"It's okay to miss your life. We had friends, family... it's all over, though. And all we have is each other, isn't that right?"_

 _We have friends now._

The truth shocked us. Every single one of them... we thought of as friends. Even Wilbur, who yes, could be annoying... he was our friend. There seemed to be something that connected all of us. Something other than our current situation. Something... deeper. We couldn't ask to have a better group.

 _"The morning is upon us. Let's hope for a good day today."_

 _Hope... heh, what an abstract thought._

"Okay. Up and at 'em. It's a brand new day!" I called, trying to sound cheerful.

Of course, Wilbur was up instantly, wide-awake and alert. "New day, still cold," he observed.

"Well, if what our senses are telling us is true, it's not gonna _get_ warmer. So we'd better get used to it," I growled, more angry at the fact that we couldn't do anything to help them.

"Is it morning already?" Wilson asked, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"Wilson, the nights are longer than the days," Nick huffed sleepily. "We've been sleeping longer than we were awake."

"It feels like I haven't slept at all." He looked up at us. "How long have _you_ been awake?"

"All night. You'd be glad to know that nothing tried murdering any of us last night, you're welcome." 

"That's... not healthy."

"We couldn't sleep, okay?" I snapped. "Come on. We need to figure out what we're going to do. Only two of us have natural warmth, and it hardly does much for us. Really, only Wilbur is able to go out without freezing to death instantly. Which is a shame- for more than one reason."

 _"You didn't like saying that."_

 _Shut up._

"Simple. You guys prepare for what's ahead, and I take care of what's going on now." The prime ape shrugged. "No big deal. I can tell it's cold by the way I can see everyone's breaths in the air, but I'm not cold at all."

"You're also next to the fire," I reminded him.

"Petty details."

"Okay, fine. Say you do manage to find everything. How would the rest of us manage to even get to the wooden thing?"

Wilbur twirled the divining rod in his hand. "Let's just hope that it's nearby. At least we're a group of four. Imagine how cold it would be if we were alone."

We didn't really want to imagine that.

Wilson sighed. "If we let you out, how would we know if you got into trouble? We couldn't lose you. You're too valuable a partner."

He seemed genuinely shocked at the praise, and we were equally shocked to find that we had the same idea. "Really? I-I thought you guys disliked me because I was so much awesomer than you-"

"Really Wilbur!?" We stomped our foot, attempting a glare but we couldn't help but smile. "If we _did_ dislike you, it was because of this notion in your head that you were the most awesome, when, in fact, we are."

"Oh-ho-ho, is that a challenge for the throne?" He grinned widely back. "Because I will not back down."

"Okay, okay, before you two get into a fight over who can out-awesome who, can we get back to the subject on hand?" Wilson asked, glaring at us both. We could practically sense his thoughts, 'is out-awesomeing a thing?', which made his attempt to make us behave more humorous.

"Sorry Wilson," I snickered, and Wilbur echoed. Suddenly, a sharp light-headiness feeling washed over us, and it took all of our strength not to stumble. _"Easy, now. Be careful."_

Reality blinked in and out for a moment, before fading to a comforting white. _Are you there?_

 _"I got you."_

After a few minutes, the feeling went away, and he retreated. They were still talking. We hadn't missed anything. _Thank you._

 _"We're in this together,"_ he purred.

 _What did they say?_

 _"Discussing whether to end- er- send, Wilbur to find the things."_

 _I'm not sure if that was an actual slip or you messing around._

 _"I'm not so sure either."_

"What do you think, Webber?" Wilson suddenly turned to us, making us jump.

"If he is the only one that can withstand the cold, we're all for it."

"You'd be for it if he _wasn't_ able to withstand the cold, wouldn't you?" Nick pointed out.

"Yeah, we should send him."

The prime ape looked quite happy to be allowed to do such thing.

"But what if he gets injured?" 

We shot the scientist our best are-you-really-that-stupid look and motioned to him. Most notably his only slightly crooked jaw-line and the wound that had already healed over and scarred from his chest injury. Wilson looked confused. "Do you really think we have to worry about him getting hurt?" I demanded. "He's impossible to kill. Well, okay, maybe not _completely_ impossible, but maybe as impossible as us dying. Also," I added. "Perhaps you should search for food while you're out?"

He puffed out his chest and saluted. "Can do, Webs!" 

We hated, hated, _hated_ that nickname, but we bit our tongue instead of getting mad like we usually did. _Let's just get this over with_.

The sun was already at it's mid-way point, but Wilbur decided to set out anyway. "See you later?"

We looked up, blinking against the weak sun rays, and didn't answer.


	83. Chapter 3 The King of Winter Part 3

**Chapter 3 of 5**

 **The King of Winter**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"Oddly enough, it seems quiet without Wilbur," I commented, staring at the dancing flames.

"It always seems quiet when one of us is missing," Webber murmured.

I blinked at him, slightly surprised that he would be worrying about the prime ape. _Or... he isn't talking about him._ "Do you think he'll be alright?" Nick asked.

"Do you think he _won't_ be alright?" Webber pointed out, leaning back. "Who are we talking about here? Mr. I've-Been-Alive-Since-The-Ancients?"

I let out a huff of laughter. "You sound pretty confident that he'll be fine."

"Because we are confident," he gave a forced smile. "We have no doubt that he'll get us out of here."

"Strong words for someone who wanted him dead not too long ago," I mused. "And someone who wanted you dead not too long ago."

He let out an odd crooning noise. "Isn't that how all friendships begin?"

I looked down at my feet, refusing to meet his gaze. _Does he still feel the pain?_

"Anywho," he suddenly veered from the subject. "What do you think we'll have thrown at us next time?"

"Well, non-stop rain, then starvation, now endless winter... I wonder," I mentally went over what could happen. "We could always be thrown into endless night."

"Oh, don't even _suggest_ that. The long, winter nights are bad enough. We couldn't survive something like that," Webber groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Not even the four of us together. We wouldn't be able to do anything. "

"Or maybe our enemy will actually be nice for once," I offered, trying to hide a smile. "I wouldn't mind a world full of food for once."

"Without winter," Webber added.

"Or rain," Nick agreed.

I looked back at the frozen landscape. It had yet to snow, but I knew it was only a matter of time. "Do you guys think we'll be able to get out of here?" I whispered.

"We're beginning to wonder what the point is," the spider sighed. "Aren't we just delaying the inevitable by trying so hard to stay alive? Besides, the closer we get to Maxwell, the closer... the closer we get to the Nightmare Throne." He shrunk down, shivering. "We don't want to be alone forever, guys. W-we don't want to lose all of you." A small, dark, half-chuckle passed through his lips. "We're just being selfish, though, aren't we?" He looked up, his eyes dark. "You guys will be fine. You all have lives to get back to surely?"

I wasn't so sure about that. Nick did, most likely, but my life had been unbelievably boring. It felt weird without Wilbur. I didn't _want_ to imagine how empty and lonely it would be if I lost Nick and Webber too. "I'm curious about what life Wilbur would lead after this," I said instead. "Would he be sent to our world or would he stay in this world? He's native, right?"

"Right," he nodded. "But he might be sent to your world." He let out another half-hearted laugh. "Maybe it's a good thing we won't go with you. After all," he motioned to himself. "It's not like we'd be accepted anywhere in your world. What was your world like, anyway?"

"Well first off, the spiders are about the size of my thumbnail," Nick butted in. "That's the biggest difference, I think."

I barked a laugh. "Where to begin with the differences? Thousands, absolutely thousands of different kinds of animals. Perhaps millions. The nights are lit by the moon and stars, and the only fear of the dark one would have would be if they were afraid of not being able to see. There's billions of people, as well. The world is vast, and not just a mainland and archipelagos, but entire continents the size of the mainland and bigger."

Webber's eyes gleamed wistfully. "Your world sounds so fascinating. Lots of people... friends... no Night Monster to haunt your footsteps. You must've loved it there." He looked down again. "Our land wasn't like this land. We had beefalo, and goats. But we didn't have the shadow beasts. The pigs never bothered us. The only thing we had to worry about really were the spiders..."

"Were there people?"

"Yes. But it wasn't billions. We lived in villages. Every villager protects and knows one another like they were family. Parents were very close to their children. I remember, when I was little, before... we... there was news going around of children being killed by spiders. I didn't believe it, so my sister and I sneaked out one night to investigate." He buried his face in his knees. "So... the spiders in your world..." he looked up again, his voice catching as though trying to hold back tears. "They were that small?"

"Oh yes. Arachnophobia was a common fear, don't get me wrong, but the spiders were so tiny people really only feared them because of their appearance. There were few spiders that could harm a human being, but those were not because of their size, but because of the fact that they were poisonous."

"Living must have been so easy," he murmured.

"Compared to here, heck yeah," Nick agreed.

"Life had it's own troubles, though," I pointed out. "Being accepted in society, finding a keeping a job, managing money..."

"Money?" Webber looked confused. "What's... that... exactly...?"

Nick and I simultaneously looked at him, shocked. "You don't know? It's what you use to buy things. Didn't you have something like it?"

"Sort of, if it's what I'm thinking. But we normally bartered." He tipped his head. "You're world... if must be so high-tech compared to our land." He looked down, running his fingers over the frozen dirt as though trying to draw in it. "Then again, full-grown spiders that can fit on your finger, a single item you barter with, it all sounds like fantasy to us. But, that's just us. If you guys didn't know this world, you probably wouldn't believe us if we told you how strange it is here. Though of course,

we didn't live in a place this dark. We came from a land where people actually _lived_. Actually _could_ live."

"It's lucky that we at least speak the same language," I put in hopefully.

"Imagine how hard it would've been if that were the case." His voice betrayed the slightest hint of real laughter. "It would've been a nightmare trying to communicate. Or if we were put in another group? Would we even have survived this long?"

"We were just lucky to get strength, intelligence, and speed in the same group," I pointed out. "And now we have... whatever Nick is." The blue-eyed warrior grinned. "and a comic relief."

"Well, our strength is gone," Webber spat bitterly. "As for Wilbur... we should just consider him a prime ape and get it done and over with."

I almost felt like I should comfort him, but I realized beforehand that I'd probably receive the same abusive treatment that he gave to Wilbur. _Now that I think of it... he kind of does abusive Wilbur. It's odd how he still puts up with him_.

"Well, talking about the past doesn't do anything for our future," Webber sighed. "We need to stop looking backwards and look forwards, because the past is gone forever, and our future is brighter than ever."


	84. Chapter 3 The King of Winter Part 4

_**A/N:**_ **Please forgive me, I am probably stuck in the worst case of writer's block I've ever had. I refuse to abandon this story, but I don't want to dish out crappy chapters... I'm trying everything to get rid of this, guys, and hopefully, soon, I will be able to get back on track. Even if it means that I can't write as anyone other than Webber... I might just have to write with him until I get back into the groove. 84 chapters... come on, we can do this...**

 **Chapter 3 of 5**

 **The King of Winter**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

 __I was surprised at how fast I could move through the snow that had started falling over night. It actually felt nice to have the ice-cold flakes melting on my fur, making it heavier and colder. Around my wrist was the ring thing, and I was holding the divining rod between by chin and chest, trying hard not to lose it. The job was easier than I imagined, for the warmth from my fire the night before had left me feeling hot. The divining rod was slightly higher than before, but I found myself stopping in shock as an unexpected smell came to me. I raised onto my hind legs, trying to sniff out the source of the scent.

Finally pinpointing it's direction, I abandoned the search for the next thing to examine it. I realized that, as the scent grew stronger, my feet seemed to be falling in pre-made footsteps. Suddenly, it washed over me to the point I nearly choked. Up ahead, the island curved and fell away in a strange pattern. It looked almost like three pieces of land in a large hole of the mainland, connected to each other and the land by bridges.

And the place reeked of human blood.

 _What happened here?_

I gingerly walked down one of the land bridges. It wasn't as bad as I thought, but it was still pretty bad. Heaps of scrap metal dotted the ground, next to each one smears and drops and puddles of blood. On the largest part of the three islands, the ground was scuffed even worse, and at one area it almost looked like someone had fallen or collapsed. But what shocked me the most was the nearly fresh footprints that lead from one way to another. _Definitely human but... nobody that I know._ I took another look at the destroyed bots, discovering that they were, indeed, clockwork monsters. "Is anyone here?" I called to the frosty air. "Is the person who destroyed these clockworks present?" Silence save for the calls of a few snowbirds answered my question.

Feeling slightly disturbed, I ran back away from it as fast as I could, letting the higher sound of the rod guide me to the next piece. _Should I tell them? Should I not tell them? Would it be more wrong to tell them, or more wrong to not tell them. Was it a beast that killed those monsters and a human? Or did a human kill the monsters? So many questions, and even I am unable to answer. Me and... heh, all my me-ness._

And it still smelled fresh even as I got further from the fighting arena. It took me a moment to realize that the scent seemed to be following me or... I was following _it_. Up ahead, following the exact trail I was pursuing, small drops of red stained the frosted grass. And then I nearly ran directly into a human skeleton. I inhaled sharply, but regretted it immediately as the odor of death permeated the air. It appeared to have died after just... collapsing. The earth was stained red all around it, and deep indentations in the frozen dirt indicated a struggle. It was on its side, it's hands clenched around an invisible wound on its stomach. Nearby, just a few feet from it in different directions where a helmet and a spear. Oddly enough, the helm didn't seem to be an average piece, as it had what appeared to be a unicorn's head carved into it in the top, along with small wings on the sides of it. The spear was sharper and had obviously been well taken care of.

I stood still in utter shock, staring at the clean white bones, then instantly began to flee towards the next thing, trying my best to escape the sour smell. _There were others here? But... is that a bad omen? Maybe they just didn't do very well because they didn't have me. I'm curious what happened though. Did they freeze? Bleed out?_ Several questions raced through my mind, but not a single one I had anywhere near an answer to, nor did I want to investigate further to find out. The rod's frantic beeping was what jogged me out of my thoughts, and I slowed down to pick up the box thing. The rod still sounded a bit higher pitched after I picked up the item, and walked around in a circle until I could determine which way the next thing was. All the while I was hoping to drive away the stench of death from my nostrils.

 _Just get out of here. Just get out of here..._ I thought desperately as I raced after the next thing.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"I don't like this at all," Wilson grumbled, glaring out in the direction Wilbur had taken off towards. "I mean... sitting around... doing nothing..."

"Could be worse," Nick replied cheerfully.

"Yeah, we could be stuck in an endless winter!" He exclaimed sarcastically. "Oh wait, we _are_."

"We could be stuck in an endless night?" I offered.

"Would you stop saying that!" He glared at me, and stomped. "I swear, you're going to jinx us."

"Well, we're just _saying_. Maybe you should just _stop whining_ and be thankful we _aren't_ dealing with that."

 _"Well, hope is an empty thought at this moment, isn't it?"_

 _You're not helping._

"I'm not _whining_ ," Wilson protested.

"I have no part in this conversation," Nick commented.

We sighed, looking back at the fire and blatantly turned our back at him. Despite the fact we cared little about what was around us and more about what we had to do to get home, we couldn't help but notice how beautiful the frost made the frozen wasteland. Reality almost seemed to flicker as the snow turned to frosty, orange, red, and gold leaves that carpeted the ground. Our mouth felt parched and our stomach empty. As soon as we saw it, it vanished, to be replaced once again by the snowy field. We blinked several times, feeling a headache coming on. _"Steady, take it easy."_

 _What was that!?_

Silence greeted my cried out thoughts for several minutes. _"I'm... not sure. A memory, perhaps?"_

 _No... no that isn't possible,_ I thought stubbornly. _That was late fall, almost winter. It early spring when Maxwell found us._

 _"Wasn't there something before that?"_

 _Minutes, not months._

A quiet _tsk tsk tsk_ , answered me.

"Hey!" Wilson snapped, smacking me lightly in the back of the head. "Wake up."

Sharp claws dug into our hands as we created a tight fist in frustration. _"Whoa whoa whoa, calm down."_

 _No... I will_ not _calm down!_ Turning my sudden rage on the nearest person, I flipped around and sliced our claws down Wilson's cheek.

He looked utterly shocked, and lifted his hand to it as blood began to drip from it. Anger turned to horror as we realized this, and pushed past him to run off before anyone could say anything.


	85. Chapter 3 The King of Winter Part 5

Pain...

That was the only thing I could think of. This pure, horrible, splitting pain. Something that was deep in my gut, seeming to want to tear me from the inside out.

I was not scared, however. I blinked around at the world... the whole world that was at my disposal. The land I could transform, morph, create, and destroy. Beautiful things or horrific things could be molded out of this blank slate. This was **my world**.

Deep within my chest, I could feel the tiny, fast paced heartbeats of every little creature that ran in the dark. I reached out to one several miles away and clenched my hand into a fist, and one heartbeat disappeared instantly.

I was unstoppable.

However, there was still something missing... but what I could not describe. Everything that kept me alive was around me at once, but a deep, pressing guilt made my rib cage ache. Why, why, _why_ did I feel this way? I knew, deep in my heart, that I was needed... but needed isn't the same thing as wanted... I took a deep breath. I was **the Night Monster**... and what was to stop me?

 **Chapter 3 of 5**

 **The King of Winter**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

"What was _that_ about!?" I demanded. "He just... stormed off! I didn't even know he had claws," my voice turned to a mumble as I gingerly touched the new wound on my cheek. It obviously wasn't bad, and had already stopped bleeding, but it certainly caught me off guard.

Nick shrugged. "He does," he informed me helpfully. "I'm actually a bit worried. It's not exactly warm enough to go on a lovely rage-induced stroll... whatever got him mad in the first place."

"Who knows with him!" I exclaimed, exasperated. "There's always something with him."

"He's troubled," the Blue-Eyed Warrior sighed with a surprising amount of sympathy. "You can't really blame him. I mean, we don't really _know_ what happened to him in between... you know... and arriving here."

"From what I gathered, he came here almost as soon as he took himself back." I tipped my head. He never really talked about his past. It was a touchy subject. "Well, it doesn't matter. We just need to-" I was abruptly cut off as, suddenly, I was unable to breath, terror begin the well up in my chest, and a black haze began to cloud the edges of my vision. Suddenly, there was Nick again, but he was no longer looking up to a friendly conversation. His bright blue eyes were blazing and he held out his sword threateningly. I followed his gaze to see... Webber. But... he looked different. His fur was slightly grayed out, streaks of purple running through it. His claws were punctuated by black edges, and he was looking back at Nick with an identical expression of fury. Behind him, I could make out two motionless shapes lying in the grass.

The pressure around my throat was released suddenly, and I fell to the ground, gasping for air. Nick took out his sword and pointed it outwards as he slowly spun around to look around, then sheathed it again and crouched down next to me. "Are you okay? What happened?"

I shook my head as I breathed deeply in and out. In, and out. I never realized how amazing it was to have clean, wonderful air back in my lungs. He seemed patient to wait as I got my breath back. "We- we can't... trust him..." I coughed, struggling to stand again, but my legs felt too weak to support me. Did I really just see the kid going full-on genocidal? And... who was the second person that was behind him? Was that me? I couldn't make out any features, other than the fact I could've sworn I saw Wilbur's tail.

"Trust...? Trust who!?" He demanded, unsheathing his sword again.

"Webber... we can't trust him."

He blinked in confusion. "He... hasn't really done anything wrong... are you just saying that because he clawed you? It's really not bad, Wilson, you know that, right? It's _just_ a scratch, nothing else."

"No... it's not that... I saw..." I shook my head again. As my breath came back, my memory of what I witnessed began to deteriorate. "Heh, I don't even remember. I'm just talking nonsense, aren't I?"

He didn't look too convinced. "I don't know... does that happen often?"

"What? Being choked for no reason or forgetting stuff?"

"No, I mean... do you see stuff? Like..."

"Um... I understand what you mean. Like... precognition? Not normally, it's happened before, though. Or... I could just be going insane," I pointed out. "That... that _does_ happen on a regular basis. I mean, we learned fairly easily how to manage sanity, but... in the winter, nothing here _grows_ that is good for sanity."

"Do you actually think that was insanity or do you _hope_ that was insanity?" Nick asked.

"I'm not sure. I _hope_ that was insanity... but, I don't understand why I would imagine something like... like that... Then again. If what we've seen here affects our sanity at all, I wouldn't deny that I _could_ imagine something like that..." I stopped, confused by what I was trying to say. "I don't see why something like that would happen though. I... I don't even remember what it was now..." I cut myself off. "Sorry, I'm babbling. I babble when I'm confused."

"I could tell."

 _It sort of felt like... like someone was trying to warn me of something..._

"Nick! Nick! Thank goodness you're alright!" I heard Wilbur cry as he hurtled into camp, carrying each of the four things at first, but dropped them as soon as he neared and launched himself at the Blue-Eyed Warrior, climbing onto his shoulder and sighing in relief. "You're alright. And if you're alright then..." He blinked, looking around. "Where's Webber?" He demanded.

"He kind of stormed off after scratching me for some reason..." I answered, and his eyes widened.

" _Webber!_ " He shouted, launching himself off of Nick's shoulders so suddenly, Nick was flung to the ground.

"Hey! Wait! Can you at least te- and he's gone," I sighed, looking exasperated at Nick. "Do you have...?"

"Nope. Not a clue."

"So, we just... wait?"

"I guess so. I mean, we have to find out eventually, right?" He shrugged.

 _I hope Wilbur didn't sense something bad was going to happen... I couldn't bare to think of what it'd be like if we lost another one of us._

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

 _Where is he? Where is he? Oh no, where is he?_ My mind cried. _What was that? I was being warned, who was there? Who was that dark, demonic, presence?_ I shook my head, listening as hard as I could. _He can't stay out here long. It's too cold._

I stopped, trying to take a deep breath and get my bearings.

"Hey Wilbur, we thought you went the other way," someone spoke up suddenly behind me, and I jumped.

"Webber! There you are!" I exclaimed in relief. He didn't meet my gaze and he seemed to be holding his claws off to the side.

"Yeah, here we are. What's up?"

I blinked at him, studying him closely. He didn't appear to look different than normal. "I was just wondering when you were coming back to camp. It's kind of cold."

He shrugged. "We were on our way back. You coming?"

"Y-yeah. Come on, we'd better hurry before nightfall comes." _Why is he being so... aloof?_

He nodded slowly, then began to walk back, waving me towards him. I stepped forward, cautiously at first, but finally forced my fear down and began to follow him normally. "Hey Wilbur?" He asked after a few, awkwardly quiet moments.

"Yeah?"

"Do..." he stopped, took a deep breath, then continued. "Do you trust us?"

I blinked at him a few times, wondering what he was getting at. _Well, he_ is _kind of mean, but..._ "Yeah, I guess I trust you... why?"

He let out a tortured chuckle. "Because we wouldn't." He looked down at his claws again. "You know what we are, right?"

"You're a spider," I replied bluntly. "What's the matter with that?"

He looked back at me, a hint of a smile appearing on his face. "Thank you."

"Thank me? For what?"

He looked away again, his muscles tensing. "Oh, come on. Do you really think Wilson and Nick _want_ us around? Sometimes we feel... you're the closest to a friend we have."

I was shocked. "You see me as a friend? Since when?"

"Since we realized... you really aren't that bad." His steps became hurried. "We'd better hurry. Nightfall is almost upon us. Did you find the things?"

"Yeah, hey, wait, why are you speeding up? H-hey, slow down!" I found myself having to run after him. "Not fair!" I shouted. "You got a head start!"

By the time we finally reached camp, we were both panting. I noticed that Wilson seemed to be keeping a cautious eye on the child, even though he really did nothing else the whole night other than poke lazily at the fire.

"Why are you looking at us like that?" Webber demanded after the sun had risen.

Wilson blinked, then frowned. "I'm making sure you don't do anything stupid."

"Stupid!" He barked, jumping to his feet. "Who are you to talk about doing _stupid_ things!?"

"You two!" Nick pushed his way between them, eyeing them both with a flare of anger in his unnaturally blue eyes. "Stop fighting. Don't forget we're leaving _today_. Got it?"

"What does that have to do with _anything_?" Webber demanded, shoving Nick out of the way to stand face-to-face with the scientist. "Tell us, Wilson. Why in the _world_ do you always feel the need to hate us? Ever since we first met, you've hated us."

There was a chilling silence as Wilson opened and closed his mouth, unable to form words, and looking shocked. "I... I don't know."

"Yes you do!" He roared. "Why are you so _mean_?" His eyes blazed with cold fury for a few moments, before his muscles relaxed and he looked down, realization coming down over his face. "It's because we're half-spider... isn't it?" He looked up, eyes sparkling. "You're afraid of spiders, aren't you? Or you were... but something about you... something about _us_... brings all of those fears back." He let out a huff of tortured amusement. "Heh, or maybe you are just afraid of something that 'is not scientifically possible'... You know what? We're here... we exist... and maybe you should start realizing that. Don't you understand what _magic_ is? Because it's not science, if that's what you think it is."

"You shouldn't be here. Talking to me, _existing_ ," He protested. "How am I supposed to react to you?"

"We've known each other for almost _three years._ What have we done to you that is so horrible to bring back a pathetic childhood fear of arachnids!"

"It's not that! Are you telling me to forget everything I learned about logic and reas-"

"There is no such thing! Don't you realize!? One world cannot have science and magic co-existing. And in this world, _your precious science means nothing_." At that point, I had to admit, even I was getting scared. "And another thing that you probably didn't realize. You came here. We were born and raised here. You came to _our_ land. So don't walk in like you know everything and point out the flaws of a flawed world." He flashed his claws, then turned to me, rage smoldering in his expression. "Come on. Let's get out of here before something _else_ happens. Where's the wooden thing."

I looked down at my paws, afraid that if I spoke, I would start something up again. I heard him sigh, then he bent down to become eye-level with me. "Come on. We fight all the time. It's what we do. Besides, the faster we get out of here, the better. Empty bellies makes for sour tempers."

I nodded, still not wanting to meet his gaze, and slowly padded over to where the things lay. I looked up at the sky, realizing that our entire day might be gone, but the sun was still halfway up in the sky. "Come on," I mumbled. "We'd better hurry."

Of course, I had to lead the party, but I realized with a twinge of fear that, although Nick and Wilson were right behind me, the spider seemed to be lagging. _It's too cold to be out for long. I hope we get there soon._ A hint of a smile on my face, I pulled out the unicorn head helmet mount I had found the other day. It was kind of freaky, but I felt like I would need it in the future. I gripped it tighter in my paw when Wilson came to walk next to me. "Hey, this is nothing," he gently told me. "You should've seen it, way back when we first met..." his eyes seemed to glaze over for a sec as he looked into the far distance. "It kind of seemed like everyone was against him..." He looked back a me, a smile appearing on the corner of his face. "There's something about him... he like, _has_ to fight with someone, or he acts all mopey and sad. I think... I think you were good for him."

I didn't reply, just fixed my gaze to the path ahead. "We're almost there... if only I knew how to put it together, I would've when I found it." No doubt the rest of the party was freezing. More awkward silence followed... which I just had to break. " _Okay_! New topic! Stories of my past!"

"Ooohhh boy," Nick laughed.

"This is gonna get deep."

"So once upon a time-"

"It's bad when it starts like that."

"So- oh hey, look! There it is," I grinned back at the group, purposely sparing them- and myself- from the torture of hearing about my fantastic life.

"Thank goodness," Webber breathed, taking the things from us and rushing over to where it was just becoming visible, his breath billowing out in clouds. "You guys are _so_ lucky that we're here," He joked as he worked on the machine. "Someone who knows what they are doing."

"Oh, shut up and put this thing together," I laughed.

"Okay," he stepped back. "Ready?"

"Yep."

"Yeah."

"Guess so."

He nodded, and as he did, the shadow hands reappeared, and I closed my eyes, letting myself be taken down into the next world.


	86. Chapter 71 Shock

_**Popsicle's POV**_

"I don't like this, Popsicle," Pyrite murmured, glancing wearily at the water that sloshed around my paws. We had attempted to come back up to the surface, but it had begun to rain. Even now, rain was seeping in through the ground above, and with just stone beneath my paws, it was forming puddles instead of being soaked into the ground.

"I don't like it either," I mumbled, looking in disgust at my filthy paws. "But you can't be rain.. how did you even live before my master left? I mean... I don't recall you ever leaving when it started to rain."

She looked confused for a moment, as though trying to figure out how to answer. "I'm not sure. I shielded myself a bit under a tree... but I guess maybe it's something that gets worse as I get older?" She shifted from her post on my head. "I'm cold."

"Sorry I'm not a fire hound," I responded dryly, then mentally kicked myself. "I have another question... though." I blinked up at the dripping roof, trying not to knock Pyrite off. "How did Zerp and Chester know about traditions that only exist in the hound pack."

"What do you mean?"'

"Well, I know that if you managed to beat the Alpha in a fight, the old one would be branded by the new one, usually a bite, in the stomach. That was a lesson drilled into my head since a pup. But... how would Zerp and Chester know about that? Last time I checked, they aren't hounds."

"Well, who knows how long they've been here? They could be as old as the Ancient Guardian for all we know. How would they _not_ know?" She sighed. "They aren't that bad, you know."

"I didn't say anything."

"But you were thinking that," she purred. "They've both been through a lot. They probably see us as minors, because neither of us are grown up. Why should they listen to a couple of kids?"

"I'm-"

"Wait, did you hear that?" She suddenly cut off. She climbed up onto my back, looking around.

"Hear what?" I asked as soon as a distant roaring came to me. "It's probably nothing. You know how sound amplifies in here."

"I hope your right," she slid back onto my head. "Thank you... by the way, for letting me stay here."

"I'm not too dry myself, remember." I lifted my nose to sniff the damp air. "Come on, let's see if we can get somewhere a bit more dry?" I began to pad back into the darkness.

"Don't go that way."

"What? Why not? That's the only way we _haven't_ gone."

"M-maybe we didn't go there for a reason. There's something bad over there, can't you sense it?"

The roaring grew a bit louder, and she climbed onto my back. I twisted my neck to look at the lavae. "What do you think it is?"

"We need to get out of here," she hissed, looking around frantically.

I turned back and squinted in the darkness, trying to make out whatever it was she was freaking out about. I thought I saw movement, and I tread a few light paces to get a better look at it, but whatever it was, it was coming to me far faster than I was coming toward it.

"It's a flood," I rasped, frozen in terror as the tidal wave neared.

"I'm scared..." Pyrite whispered as soon as the floor hit us, sweeping me off of my paws and throwing Pyrite off of me.

"Pyrite!" I cried, struggling to keep my head above the water. I opened my mouth to howl again but a wave splashed over my head, dragging me back down. I swam back to the surface, spluttering. "Py-Pyrite!" Another wave crashed over me, bringing me down into the water and not letting me get back up. The water rushed faster and faster around me before bringing me up just in time to crash into a stalactite...

…

I blinked awake, coughing up mouthfuls of water from my lungs. I had apparently been brought back to the surface, because a bright sun shone overhead, helping to dry my soaked fur. "Pyrite?" I coughed.

"Popsicle... where are we?" Beside me, warming me physically and mentally, was Pyrite, who was already looking around with big eyes. Her tiny body was laced with bruises and scrapes, but it didn't seem to put her off. Much to my surprise, it didn't smell like rain or damp stone or mud, and the grass was only lightly brushed with water, like morning dew, instead of being completely waterlogged.

"I don't know..." I was going to say more, but I stopped myself. She had completely frozen, her eyes wide as she stared ahead of us. "What's wrong?"

"I... I feel like I need to go there," she stammered.

I lightly butted her. "Come on! Let's explore then!"

Something slightly bigger than myself lightly nipped at my scruff, and I flipped around, not sure what to expect. Before I could even comprehend what I was seeing, she licked the top of my head, making my fur stick up. "M-Momma?" I cried, burying my face in her chest. "I-I thought you were dead. Or..." I jumped back, studying the larger ice hound. "Am I dead?" I rasped.

"No you are not, pup," she rumbled, nudging my flank.

I blinked up at her, then where Pyrite was beginning to creep forward. "Can I explore with Pyrite?"

Kira- my mother- just gazed at me through twinkling eyes. "Pup... you know that you can't go with her."

"Why not?"

"Popsicle! Come see this!" I heard Pyrite call.

I looked from the ice hound to the lavae, lightly touched noises with my mother, than hurried over to Pyrite. I stopped beside her to see what looked like a bit more grass, surrounded on three sides by low brush. Three very familiar beasts were lounging in the grassy clearing. The Moose nuzzled her three chicks, softly honking to them. Nearby, the Bearger had it's nose pressed in to a berry bush, softly chewing on the red berries. Deeper in the brush, the Deerclops was breaking a few limbs from a tree and examining it for leaves.

"The giants..."

"Pup, you can't stay here." Mother murmured in my ear as she watched them.

"Wait. Can I see my mother?" Pyrite asked, looking up at my mother with her big eyes.

"Hold on. Before anything else..." I turned to Pyrite. "Mom, can I talk to Pyrite for just a moment?"

She gently nuzzled me behind my ear, then stepped back.

"What's wrong, Popsicle?"

 _Here I go._ "Pyrite..." I breathed. "I... I like you. Not like, friend-like, but like..." I took a deep breath. "Like, every time I'm around you, I just get this weird, warm sensation in my heart, and I love the way you act and talk and... what I'm trying to say is... I love you."

She was silent for many moments, and I shifted uncomfortable. "I... I don't know what to say... I mean... I'm sorry. I love you, but not like that... I love you.. like a brother." She looked up, shock still obvious on her face.

"I had a feeling," I murmured, ducking my head. "I... I just wanted you to know."

"Pup... Pup it's time to go," Mother whispered in my ear.

I looked up in her eyes. "Actually, can I meet the Dragonfly also?"

She blinked a few times, then touched noises with me. "Of course, pup. Follow me. The Dragonfly is not a giant to bother, and she will take to seeing you better if there is a familiar face in the group." The ice hound raised her chin and took the lead, walking straight in the middle of the clearing, even taking a moment to lightly touch noises with the Bearger in greeting, then went on. Pyrite and I followed in an awkward silence. _Was it wrong to tell her? Oh no, what did I do?_ Then it occurred that she wasn't even paying attention to the fact I existed. _She's worried about her mother. She's worried that the Dragonfly will be just like everyone says she is._

The grassland suddenly changed, the dark grass abruptly turning into hot sand that burnt my paws, and the brush turned into cacti. Up ahead, I spotted a cave protruding from the sand. Inside of said cave was a large bundle of green scales, slowly rising up and down to the rhythm of sleep. "Is that her?" I asked.

Mother did not reply. Slowly, as though realizing it had visitors, the bundle of scales slowly rose up, fluttered a few paces into the sun, and stretched luxuriously, showing off thick, emerald green scales and pearly white claws. The sunlight actually made the beast look quite beautiful, and, after a moment, I even spotted an underlying set of sunset orange scales. Her bug-like eyes, still sleepy looking, moved from Mother, to me, to Pyrite. _This is what Pyrite will look like when she grows up? She'll go from cute to beautiful?_

Her gaze stayed on Pyrite for what seemed like an eternity, then she looked at my mother. "Kira... what is this?" She demanded.

"I'm very sorry to disturb you, but someone has been wanting to meet you for a long time."

Pyrite was doing a fantastic statue impersonation as the Dragonfly fluttered closer to her, her eyes widening. "Oh my... is it really you?" She gingerly reached one, clean white claw down to touch the lavae. Pyrite seemed to shrink before straightening herself as her wounds disappeared from where the giant stroked her flank. "My precious daughter," she croaked, completely ignoring me.

"H-hi," she stammered. "My name's P-Pyrite."

"Pyrite..." she repeated. Her gaze was surprisingly warm and loving as she stroked away the wounds from her daughter. "What happened to you to harm you so much?" Suddenly, she flashed her claws and flipped to face me, her eyes blazing. I yelped and shrunk back against my mother, who sat patiently behind us.

"No! Don't hurt him!" She cried, rushing in front of me. "He's... he's good." I felt my icy blue cheeks turn red. "We both were in a flood."

"If you both were in the flood, then why is he still alive, but you are not?"

My heartbeat seemed to stop and I stiffened, staring at her in disbelief, my vision blurring and swirling around me. _She's dead... she's... dead..._ I fell to the side, only to be caught in warm talons as the Dragonfly slowed my fall to the ground.

 _No... this is just a dream... none of this happened... I-I'll wake up, and I'll still be at camp, sitting lazily by my master..._

 _ **A/N:**_ **We interrupt your regularly scheduled angst to bring you some fluff... then more angst. XP Seriously though, I'd love to know what you guys thought about this one. Angsty? Adorable? Heartwarming? Just stupid and boring? I'd love to know, because I'm not even sure what I was shooting for here...**


	87. Chapter 4 Two Worlds Part 1

**Chapter 4 of 5**

 **Two Worlds**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __ _Nope. Not going to do it. Not going to open my eyes to yet another horrible world to be stuck in._ I silently raged. Of course, being unable to move anyways, this didn't make much of a difference. It wasn't until I heard the latest speech, however, I started to get curious about this one.

"Say. Pal. Let's make a deal. You can stay here. Settle down, even. I'll give you food, gold, pigs, whatever you need. All I want in return is a truce."

 _Truce?_ I noticed that the atmosphere felt... different. In fact, it felt lighter almost and... well, not winter, so it felt warm as well. Finally, I forced myself to sit up, looking at my companions, who had already risen. "Not another one," Nick moaned, leaning back again.

"At least it's not winter," Wilbur pointed out casually.

Webber was staring far off into the distance, his gaze fixed and remote and his whiskers twitching.

"What's wrong?" Nick asked, punching him lightly in the arm.

He blinked several times before shaking his head and looking around. "Nothing. Why? Is something the matter with you?"

I frowned, then looked around the new area. Much to my surprise, instead of a barren wasteland or something else of the sort, I spotted trees, berries, _food_ as far as the eye could see. We were near a campfire as well, providing the much needed warmth after several long days of bitter cold.

Wilbur was examining the new area as well, his eyes wide as he took in sights, sounds, and smells I could never detect at such a distance. "I smell beefalo... and pigs!" He cried under his breath.

"Winter? Or anything of the sort?"

"Nope! Looks like Maxwell was getting desperate. He saw how _awesome_ we are that he couldn't resist giving us relaxation for a change," he grinned.

Webber got that faraway look again, then stood up as if to walk away.

"Hey, hey where are you going?" I demanded, standing in his way.

"We'll be back," he replied absently, trying to push past me. "Come on. Let us through. We need to see what we're up against."

"I seriously think he isn't trying to kill us this time, Webber," Nick explained.

He shrugged, then pushed me out of the way and disappeared into the trees.

"Gah! Why can't he stay put for once!" I exclaimed, taking a step forward to catch him but was stopped by Wilbur.

"Don't mess with him. He probably knows something I don't... which is highly unlikely, by the way. I _do_ pretty much know everything. Anyway," he went on before I could say anything. "Maybe we should just... stop fighting for once and actually _enjoy_ ourselves... we have no clue what's up ahead, and we need to prepare. If he's throwing something like this at us, we have to be getting close to him. Besides... I don't remember the last time I was able to eat all I wanted! Shall we go find those beefalo?"

"No," I responded instantly. "That's probably not a good idea. Beefalo are hard to hunt... they gang up on you horribly."

He straightened himself and tipped his chin. "Just for your information, we had beefalo back on my island. Water beefalo.. and I can assume they don't look the same... but they did the same thing. If you are able to keep one on your tail and get the rest away, it's very easy to take it down. It requires speed, though, and nice stamina, to outrun them for that long."

"Where are the pigs in relation to them?"

"Um... probably right next to them," he sniffed. "The scents are kind of... mingled..."

"Then that's not possible," I concluded. "The fastest member of the group is Webber, and he has problems with pigs."

The prime ape grinned even wider. "Then why don't we take out the pig village? Every. Last. Piggy."

"Would we be able to do that?"

"For Pete's sake- you killed the giants, remember!? What makes you think you _can't_ take on a pig village?"

"We only fought one giant at a time," I reminded him sharply. "We outnumbered them at least."

He rolled his eyes and sat down with a _thump_. "Or we can just sit here and continue to be hungry, if that's what you want. I'm fine either way. I can survive quite a while without food, unlike humans." He raised his paw to examine it, then flicked it at me, showing his own, short claws. "Or I can just take out my own food. It's not like we need the _fastest,_ just someone who is fast. Come _on_. It'll be fun."

"I don't trust Maxwell, okay?" I barked.

"I'll just... go maybe?" Nick looked from Wilbur to I. "I mean... it's probably not safe... but I'm _kind of_ worried about getting caught in the middle of something..."

"Yeah, go do... whatever Nicks do. We'll finish up here," I waved him off. "Go figure out what Webber's doing or something."

"That makes me feel special. Okay, I'll be back, I guess..."

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __There was something about the horizon that kept our eyes fixed on it, our muscles tense, and our breathing slightly funny. That distant horizon... where the sea met sky... there was something beyond it. Something that was tugging at us... at _me_... to come to it- or come back to it. Wilson's attitude was understandable, but we just wanted to be alone to think and wonder- and hope.

 _Do you know what's going on?_

 _"No... good news is that you may have your fainting problem under control,"_ he added optimistically.

 _Gee, thanks. You're really good at knowing things._

 _"Your sarcasm is flattering."_

"Hey, what are you doing here?" I heard Nick's voice behind us, and slowly managed to tear our gaze away to look at him.

"Looking..." We looked back. "Do you see something out there...? Something that would make us _feel_ like this?"

"What do you feel like?" He asked, sitting next to us. "Like it's something familiar?"

"Yeah, kind of... the... the _atmosphere_ this place has feels familiar."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah..." Suddenly, something in our mind clicked, and reality crashed down on us. "Nick... I-I think that this... this is our native world... not the mainland but..." We strained our vision, trying to spot _anything_. "Home..."


	88. Chapter 4 Two Worlds Part 2

**Chapter 4 of 5**

 **Two Worlds**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

"See? Can't you see now I was right?" I joked as I hopped around Wilson, who grudgingly following my general direction.

"You aren't right until I say you are."

"Ooh! Freshly proved wrong, still burning with _shame_." I 'accidentally' whipped his leg with my paralyzed tail.

He grumbled under his breath, extending his arm to try and find the trail of a thing. "It's odd... I'm not picking anything up." He squinted at it. "Maybe it's broken."

"Maybe we're just not near any of the things," I pointed out.

"We've been walking for awhile, it's odd th-" He was suddenly cut off as he just... disappeared. I blinked several times, then looked down. Right about where he was standing was what looked light a wide-open, circular mouth. _The ground literally opened up and swallowed him whole..._ I took a few steps back, and the mouth closed again.

"Oh, hey, there you guys are." Nick ran up to me, Webber close behind him, his gaze still remote. "We were beginning to wonder-" He looked around. "Where's Wilson?"

"The ground swallowed him. Nothing to be afraid of, happens _all the time_." I poked the mouth.

"It's a worm hole," Webber told us matter-of-factly. "We used to see them all the time back at home. Never touched them, though. Not exactly sure what they do."

"You never jumped in one?"

"Jumped in one!? Heck no. I wasn't an idiot, I wasn't just going to do stupid stuff and get myself eaten!"

None of us said anything, just so he could hear his own words.

" _But that's not the point!_ " He insisted, trying to lure away from his mistake. "The closest we got to them is we'd get close enough to poke them with sticks. It was a kid thing."

I was still trying to get over the 'wasn't going to do stupid stuff and get myself eaten' part, so I was unable to respond without exploding into laughter.

"You think it's safe?" Nick asked, ignoring me.

"No clue. Whelp," he clapped his hands together. "Volunteers to jump? Anyone?"

"Why don't you?" I challenged, even though I had to stifle another bout of laughter.

"Blech, no, too many teeth... and too slimy," he added, peering into the dark hole as it opened up again.

"Can't be worse than living inside of a spider for four years?"

"Oh, Wilbur, that's so nice of you, to volunteer yourself, have fun." The spider grabbed my tail and lifted me by it. I grinned at him.

"Doesn't hurt. It's numb, remember?"

"Then this won't hurt either," he replied simply, dangling me over the worm hole and dropping me. I grabbed his ankle at the last second and pulled him down with me. A few seconds later, I was being spat out again into fresh air, my pelt slimy with strange gunk. Nick and Webber were spat out a few seconds later, both looking utterly miserable. Just to annoy them, I shook myself as hard as possible, droplets of mucus and saliva spraying everywhere.

"You jerk!" Webber growled, though I noticed the glint of playfulness in his white eyes, something I had rarely seen from him. He kicked at a clump of the mud we were standing on, and it hit my directly in the chest. I fell over dramatically, holding my chest like it was bullet wound. I heard him purring. "Okay, get up, before you turn into a lump of mud yourself," he purred, getting me to get back on my feet. I tried to shake off the mud as well, but it clung stubbornly to my pelt. "Will you think twice about acting like a doofus next time?"

"No regrets!" I cried, yanking my paws out of the foul mud. The ground had a horrid stench rising from it, covered in a putrid purple goo which made up the 'mud'. The ground itself seemed to growl and grumble curses from within, and around us, several spots of mud were disturbed by clumps of bubbles. Now that everyone was looking at our surroundings, I could almost see how much they wanted to jump back into the worm hole into the perfect little world Maxwell was bribing us with on the other side. I tipped my head. "Shall I sing an inspiring song?" I joked.

"Don't you dare."

 _"Now that we're men! We can do anything!"_ I was cut off, giggling, as Webber lightly cuffed me across the head, not the usual hefty whack. "Come on! I was going to march and _everything_!" I laughed. Nick and Webber both chuckled as I hummed loudly and started marching in a random direction.

"Didn't we come here for a reason?" Webber pointed out.

"Oh yeah, almost forgot about Wilson..."

"I didn't!" I chirped. "I just don't care!"

"I can't believe you'd say that!" Nick exclaimed. "He's one of us."

"Eh... we're probably happier without him.. he's not exactly been the nicest person."

"I don't understand why you have so much problems with him," Nick murmured. "He's always been nice to me."

"We don't understand either..." his voice broke off as he looked into the distance together, then shook his head. "You know what? We should go back. It's so much nicer there..." the spider glanced up at the sky, which had gone from midday to dusk as soon as we traveled through the worm hole.

"Agreed, and you can stare at your ledge some more." Nick lightly elbowed him in the thigh.

"First order of business, we need to hunt. Of course, I know just the way to do it."

I beckoned them towards the worm hole. "Hopefully, it'll be daytime again when we travel back through... man, that's confusing," Nick mumbled under his breath.

This time, I could tell we just wanted to get the journey through it done as fast as possible to get it done and over with, but at least upon reappearing there was patch of dewy grass I used to clean myself of the purple goop and worm hole juices. "Well that was an entirely new category of interesting," I commented casually. "You guys know where the area we woke up was? Because I do, if you guys are curious," I smiled at them.

"You scared me for a second!" Nick protested. "I was afraid you got us lost again!"

"Whaaaat? Nooooo, that doesn't sound like me _at all_. I have _fantastic_ sense of direction. Isn't that right, Webber?"

"Not saying anything," he mumbled. "You can be smart when you want to, but that isn't too often."

I lightly punched Nick. "That's how you can tell he likes me, because he knows me so well."

Nick's reply was a smile, then he turned his gaze towards the spider, who had, once again, gotten the faraway look in his eyes, as though trying to see through the trees and passed even where my superior sight could not see. He stepped forward to put his arm over his shoulder. "You know you can't go back," Nick whispered.

"I know," Webber sighed, his voice void of any and all glee he had just seconds ago. "It's hard..." he looked down at his hands, and his whole body quivered. "Doesn't mean I can't miss them."

"Who? What's wrong?"

'His family', Nick mouthed, then turned back to Webber. "We all have someone we miss. Sometimes we leave them, sometimes... they leave us. It's unpredictable. Parents, siblings... mentors..."

"Who do you miss?" I asked him.

"No one of your concern," he snapped.

For a second, I was shocked. I had never seen the blue-eyed warrior react to a simple question fiercely before. I blinked. Maybe I was wrong about him. Maybe there was more to him than met the eye.


	89. Chapter 4 Two Worlds Part 3

_**A/N:**_ **I feel so bad because it's hard for me to write these chapters . I have such big plans ahead! Plus, I'm kind of disappointed how I've been unable to return the Wilbur we met chapter... 53 was it? Man, I keep losing track of everything here. Trust me, I've been trying** _ **very**_ **hard to get that back, yet somehow, it's a lot harder when he's not the one who knows what the heck he's doing than when he's the one being all boss and stuff... Maybe I'll be able to do that in the future. At the same time, yes! A bit a advancement on Nick's character. He hasn't had much... importance... because my brother (the creator of Nick) will literally not let me do much of anything with him. I say 'let's do this!' and he just says 'Nope!'. Don't worry, I also have big plans for Nick..**

 **Chapter 4 of 5**

 **Two Worlds**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __ _I really, really,_ really _hate this,_ I thought in disgust as I waded through oozing purple gunk that went up to my knees. The ground earlier was much firmer, but it was also more dangerous. As it seemed, the swampland was a fantastic place for the most annoying of creatures, from disease-ridden mosquitoes to filthy and starving spiders. The softer- and more disgusting land- made it harder for me to move, yes, but almost impossible for spiders, since it would pretty much cover them up the their heads. So, it was harder work, but it was safer than the rest of the swamp.

Didn't mean I had to like it.

Then there was the divining rod, which seemed to hate it as much as I did. It's beeps were pathetic and choked sounding, even when I kept the main part of the machine well clear of the wet ground. In the hand not holding the rod I was holding a torch. It was nighttime, after all.

When I first found myself outside of the weird hole with teeth, well, I wasn't sure that's where I came from and I wasn't about to find out by jumping back into it. I didn't even remember what had happened. I knew that I had been talking to Wilbur, but I didn't remember about what or what happened right after. So of course, I went to go find out what happened and see if I could get back.

Through my frustration at the mud, though, I realized that I was also a tad afraid. It was a minor emotion at the time, but it puzzled me. My heart was pounding, and it wasn't just me trying to push through the mud and gunk. I was actually scared.

I was abruptly dragged from my thinking as I slipped into a hole in the ground, bringing the mud up to my neck. I grabbed a nearby reed to drag myself out, but not before I got a mouthful of the putrid filth. I found myself on firmer ground, luckily, and was able to spit it out before I could gag myself. The fowl taste stayed in my mouth, and I passed my tongue over my lips several times to try and get rid of it. I turned and pulled the rod from the sinkhole as well, hoping that it was still functional. "Blech, this stuff is disgusting," I spat, shaking the divining rod clean. Wherever I was going, it at least seemed to be taking me closer to the things.

After the sinkhole, the ground was firmer, and I was glad to at least be able to walk. _I wanna go back to the other area,_ I thought with a hint of anger. _At least I could find things other than_ these stupid monsters! It took me a second to realize I was sitting in silence, save for the distant grumbles and growls that seemed to follow me wherever I went in the swamp, made by no creature in particular. I blinked. Was there a noise I was supposed to be able to hear other than the swamp sounds. Then realization dawned on me.

The rod.

I gritted my teeth and wiped off the rest of the mud from the divining rod, trying to see if it still made noise but couldn't be heard because of the mud. I breathed out a sigh of relief as it let out another, soft, choked _vwoom._ _Thank goodness,_ I thought, then began to make my way across the firmer ground of the swamp.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __ _"He's been gone over a day you know,_ " He reminded me.

Of course we knew. Unlike Wilbur and Nick, however, we didn't really care much. It was so much happier, easier to be happy, without him around. And then Nick started acting all weird, and Wilbur's attention was abruptly divided to trying to sneak information out of him.

"So Nick, what are you trying to go back to?" He asked, rather bluntly.

The warrior didn't meet his gaze. "Home. Isn't that what we're all here for?"

"Not really," I piped in. "We're just here because- well- we need to free your guys' butts. You're very welcome, by the way." Wilbur snickered, then turned back to Nick.

"What kind of home? Friends? Family?"

"Friends." He shrugged. "I didn't really grow up with any family. My mentor was my parent figure and he... well, that doesn't matter now. I want to get back to my army."

"Army?" He inquired, real interest spiking his voice. "By any chance... your full name isn't Nicholas Swiftsword V, right?"

"It is," he replied, finally looking up to meet his gaze. "Why?"

"Like, the leader of the Revolution? _The_ Revolution?"

He laughed a bit. "Yeah, that's me. How do you know about us?"

"Oh man, oh man, I didn't realize this whole time..." Wilbur looked excited, leaping onto Nick's shoulders. "Maxwell- he knew about you guys!"

The Revolution. It sounded familiar to us as well. " _The Revolution... well, it isn't exactly on Maxwell's good side,"_ the spider spoke up. _"He doesn't like anyone who can destroy him, and the Revolution not only has the troops to do so, but the leader to wipe him out."_

I stopped for a second. _Wipe him out?_

 _"You never knew? I thought the legend of the Power Keeper was passed down for centuries, no matter what tribe or race. His sword has the ability to destroy- or absorb- darkness. Don't you know that's how he purified the Ancient Guardian?"_

Of course we knew. We didn't quite remember how, but somehow the concept seemed familiar. A brief reality check and we noted Wilbur was still droning on about how he had known _the_ leader of _the_ Revolution and didn't even realize. We shivered.

It's a good thing we weren't made of darkness or anything.

The night was over in what felt like a few minutes, and a basic campfire allowed us the relax during the short nighttime. For once, food was plentiful, possible threats weren't found on explorations around- we had already been warned by the massive pig village up North, and even though we still remember our first encounter with the pigs, back before this land, we wanted to stay away from them. They were always nice to us. Until...

 _"Until me. And now you're stuck with me,"_ the spider finished the thought with a joking note to his voice.

 _Could be worse._

There was silence for a few minutes. _"I thought I was the worse. Now you're telling me someone could be worse?"_ He made a few clicking noises. _"Well, you might have to go against someone who's much worse."_

 _What?_ I thought sharply, but he didn't respond.

Suddenly, we caught Wilbur looking at us with pity in his eyes. "Are you worried?" He asked.

"Worried?" I echoed.

"About Wilson," he pressed.

"Oh... yeah." _Sure, let's go with that._

He glanced at Nick, who was sleeping, then sighed. "You really don't care much, do you? This reminds me of the time when you not only didn't try to save me from Tiger Lily but goaded her to eat me. I remember those days. Those were good days. But it's like... you can't connect with anyone. What's up with that?"

 _"Mental disorder,"_ said the spider matter-of-factly. _"Most likely. Unable to feel proper compassion because you never learned how. It's rather sad, actually."_

We shrugged. "It's hard to trust someone when they've _tried to kill you in the past._ "

"Come _on!_ I thought we were over that!"

"Nope. Never said we were."

"You frustrate me, you know that?"

At the same time, Nick whimpered something in his sleep, so quietly only Wilbur and I could pick it up, even if Wilson were there.

"No... I'm sorry... I should've listened, Max..."


	90. Chapter 4 Two Worlds Part 4

_**Charlie's POV**_

 __The room was a blank, white slate. From where she stood, a single bubble floated quietly. Thin strands like wisps of smoke branched out of the bubble, creating dozens and dozens of new timelines. One decision could change the world. It didn't matter how big or small. Just from where she looks, she could see several possibilities from the perspective of her little... project. Not even Maxwell knew about this place, as only the being connected directly to the world, being the Night Monster and no one else, could enter the world's sourcecode and read it.

There was one where they decided to kill her, which branched off into several paths. Each move of a weapon, each slice, formed a new possibility. A few more where she tried to kill them- a couple of those where she succeeded, but most of them had to do with taking out the scientist.

There were a few major events, that shook the timelines even to that day. The Ancient Guardian battle, for one, had two major outcomes. One where the spider survived, and another where the robot survived.

She made her way to the other side of the room, where the grayed out bubbles told of decisions yet to come. None that she could see brought all five of them together, but several ended in four. A couple where the spider went rogue and refused to go farther or refused to take the Throne. A few others where someone else had to take it.

Timelines were a shaky and odd thing to mess with, but sometimes, she just like to sit back and wonder what would happen. There were a few others that stood out to her as well.

One involved a couple of girls. There were almost none where they survived. Either Charlie herself killed them, or... some other dark presence teased them for awhile before dealing a deadly blow on the young woman and young girl, who was only a bit older than the spider from her project.

She stopped at where the first string of bubbles ended. It was so foggy, you could hardly see it. It was a one in a million chance for something so clouded to clear itself out and become the timeline that one follows. Despite this, however, she usually was able to see what was inside. But this one was purely black on the inside, pass the fog. She had seen these before, but she still wondered what they meant. She pondered over the possibilities for a second, before turning to leave, when suddenly, a figure appeared in front of her. The figure looked much like herself, but red and black, and only slightly taller. Charlie stepped back again. "What are you doing here?" She demanded.

The nightmarish demon chuckled. **""͟͠҉D̵̵̕o҉̴i͏ņ̴g̶̡ t̸h̷́e̵ ̢same aş̵̵ ́͠y̷̛͢o̶̢u̕͢,͞ ̧C̛h҉̴̨à̢r̨l̨̡͏íe̢.̢̨ ͏҉P͏on̴ḑ̡e̶ŗ̶͡i͢͡ǹ̢ģ ̶́o̢ve̛r̷ ̷̢͝t́͢h͡e ̶̴̨n͠͏i̡g͏͟h̷́t̶̀m͝҉́a̢re̢s҉ ̧̨͟t̶̵h̡a͏͡͞t ̴a̸̡͡w͢a͢i̛҉̡t́ ͏u͟s̷.̛**

"Nightmares?" She demanded. "What are you talking about?"

 **"̷͏Fȩ̴͟a̧̕ŗ̧͠ ҉̡an҉d͟ ́te͏͝҉r̛r̡͡͝o̶͝r ͏̕c̵͟o҉ņ͟͟t҉͡ŕo̸l̕͟͟ ̵̨o͢͝ur̸ ̧͞f̸̨́ų͠túr̵͞e̸.̛ ̷̨̀D̛͡͏a̸r̨k̡͢҉ń̢es͟͞s͟͢ ͞i̴s̡̧ ̵r͡i̡͟͝si̧̢͝ng̴̡.̡͠͞ ͞Y̕҉o͠҉́u̶ ͏̨c̀́a̵͝n͡ǹ̵̨o̵͡t̶ ̷b͡͞e̶̴̶ ͠͡wha̢t̛͢ ̕͡a̕re̛ ̷̶̨y̴̧͠ơu ̷̕f̸̛ò̶ŕ̛͟ ̸l҉̡on̵͝g..̡.̷̴͢ ͝T̶̵̷h͏ȩ͞r҉͡e̛ i̵̵͝s͟͏ ҉g̶͏r̕éat ̡͡c͞h̢͢͝ąn̴͝g̨҉͢é͏̀ ̴́͝c̢òm͝i͝n̵g̶̡͏.̧ ̴͡No͝t̀ ̡̡j҉us̷t͏͏ ̨͟͠f̷ór̡̧ ҉͠y̡͟o̡͞͏u̵̡͡ ̶͞a͡͡n̛͞d̴́͝ ͞͝Í̢͝ ͏b̴͝uţ̸.҉.̨͟͡.̛.̨͟ ҉f͏҉ò͝r ́͏y͟͡ó̸u͠r̢̡ ̨̡ĺį̶͝t̷tl̴e͡ ̨́'̧pr̀͠o͢͞͠j͏̴͠ec̴̡͞t̢'̶̀͡ ̵as͟ y̢ó͡͝u͞ ca͟ĺ͏l͠ ̕i͢͡͏t̶̡͞.̷"̡͠҉**

Charlie looked away. "I don't understand."

 **"̛Y͝ớu͏́͠ ͏̸á̴ŗ̸͝e̕͝n̡͏'̛͝t̵͟ ͏m̷͢éa̛͠nt҉ ̸̧̀t̕͝o҉̶̕.̨"̕͠**

And as suddenly as it appeared, it was gone, leaving Charlie shaken and shocked. The spirit of the Night Monster always made her feel this way. It spoke barely understandable garbled words, and it reminded her of thought to be forgotten horrors. Charlie hurried away before the demon could continue to torture her.

 **Chapter 4 of 5**

 **Two worlds**

 _ **Wilbur's POV  
**_

 __I rose on my hind legs, staring defiantly ahead of me.

"You lied," Maxwell growled. I shrugged.

"As if you haven't in the past? About much worse things, nonetheless."

"Much worse, hah. You said the job was done!" 

"It _was_ done!" I exclaimed, my voice rising in frustration. "It's not _my_ fault that he's nearly impossible to kill!"

"You didn't even try," he accused.

"Oh, you look like you are trying your absolute best! You had another plan up your sleeve, but it's too late now. You thought bribery would work. It's not. Also, let's not forget. This happened almost forty chapters ago! Why are you just now getting me about it!?"

"Because I thought you were still loyal to your master," his voice became deadly quiet. "Why are you fighting for them now? You have so much potential, so much knowledge, and yet you use it for a useless cause. Worse, you gave the spider a reason to live."

"Oh? And what's that? Revenge? I think between you and the Ancient Guardian, revenge is still clear on his mind."

"No you incompetent baboon! You! You are the reason for him to live!"

I smiled up at him. He couldn't hurt me. This was just a dream. "For your information, good sir," I said in a mocking tone of voice. "I am not a baboon. I've never even heard that one before. As I have gone through several times with everyone else, I am in fact a _prime ape_. Plus, you _were_ the one who brought Nick here in the first place. Nicholas Swiftsword V! Of anyone!"

"I did not bring that wretched creature here," he spat.

"Then you are _sooo_ lucky to have whoever brings prisoners here. Oh wait, that's Charlie, isn't it? Or does she just bring people from the living world to this dead domain? I never can remember." I raised my chin, purposely trying to annoy him. "And don't talk that way to your _elders Maxwell_. It's _not polite_."

He tried to lunge at me, but it seemed like invisible chains were holding him back. "They're dead! They will never get past Charlie! No one has!"

I lightly took a step back. "You are a _feisty_ one! Geez!" I realized that it must almost be morning in the waking world, and I waved to him with a smirk. "G' bye, it's been nice taunting you!"

He was so easy and so funny to mess with. His little tantrums were almost adorable, like a little kid who didn't get his way. Finally, I found myself waking up fully, still as tired as I was when I fell asleep. That was one downside about the long day. The nighttime only lasted an hour, so if you wanted to get any sleep, you'd need to be able to sleep through daylight hours, which I wasn't a master of exactly. Nick was still asleep, and I was pretty sure Webber didn't sleep at all, because he was still as wide awake as he was the night before. _One part of him is nocturnal, one part is diurnal. What a weird combination._ "It's hard to get any sleep around here," I complained. He shrugged.

"We haven't really been tired lately."

"Really?"

He shrugged again. "Spiders are naturally night-dwelling monsters. It could just be a hint of spider showing through again."

I examined him for a good moment. "Oh really. You've been doing a lot of showing your spider side recently. Were you always like that? I don't remember."

"It's a more recent thing, but it's to be expected." I opened my mouth to protest, but before I could, he continued, changing into the spider language so Nick couldn't understand him. "So... who do you suppose Max is? "

"Good question, but it's not that easy to change the subject on me like that." I squinted at him. "Are you _alright_?"

"We're fine!" He insisted. "Just-" he cut himself off.

"Just...?"

"Just... a bit worried. Since bribery certainly isn't working... you can't help but wonder what else he has up his sleeve."

 _Oh you'd be horrified if you knew half of the plans he has up his sleeve_. "So... I can safely assume you don't care at all about Wilson."

I looked away. "It's hard to tell, anymore. Sometimes we think about how it used to be in the past, when he used to be nice! Now..." he shuffled his feet. "Now it feels like he hates us because we're half spider. It's unfair..."

The brief thought of what Maxwell said popped into my head. I was supposed to kill this kid not too long ago, and here he was, practically begging for comfort but refusing to say it out loud. He seemed to have given up hope. Then again, it wasn't hard when you knew that you only existed for a few other people to be freed. I sighed. "You and Nick, I swear. You two are gonna kill me. You with your pessimism and Nick with his mysterious past. You two are giving me gray furs!"

He lightly laughed, then punched my shoulder affectionately. That was one thing that had changed drastically about him. He had went from absolutely hating me to only halfway hating me. I grinned at him. "Come on, you don't hate me completely." I lightly elbowed him back. "Admit it."

Webber let out a snort of laughter. "You're alright, Wilbur. You're alright."


	91. Chapter 4 Two Worlds Part 5

_**A/N:**_ **Hey guys, I'm actually kinda proud of the beginning of this chapter, but after the whole intro scene it gets worse for... a reason. You see, I came down with a pretty sever cold. Like, my throat is always dry, no matter how much I drink, I can't breath through my nose, my head feels stuff with cotton balls... everything is against me. But... you know me -sniffle- I will make myself write, through heat and cold, through sun and rain, through health and sickness...**

 **I realized that the creepy text might have been... a little hard to read for some people, so for now on, whenever I use it I will put the translation in bold parenthesis next to it so that you can understand what's going on.**

 _ **Ņ̶̷ì̕҉͡g̸̵h҉̸̸̵͡t̷̵̀͢҉m̶̧̀̕͞a̶̛r̵̨͞e̡̛͠s̵.̢͟҉̶̀.̵̸̷̛.̵̶̢̢**_

Charlie and I stood quietly side by side in the cover of her world- beautiful darkness that no light from moon nor stars could penetrate. Where we were safe.

 **"̸̧͝T̡̡͞͝͏h̷̕e҉̴̨͝ ̸̧͠ȩ̢͟͠ņ̢͟͡d͢͞ ̨̨͢i͢͝s̸̷͡ ̨́͠͠͠n̡̢̕é̵̕á̵r̀͢͞͞i̢͢ņ̸̸̸g͏̴̡̀͝.̀̕͝.̷̸̀́.̸̕"͡͏ (The end is nearing)** I growled **. "̸́͢͡Ẁ̢̡͢͡h̵͢ą̵t͏̴̕ ̴̢̧͢͝ì͞͠͡s͏̸ ̸̶l̢͞e̴̶̶f҉t͏̵̛͢ ̸̧͢t̸̀́̀͡ǫ̷͡ ̕҉̶͡b̷͞͝͞ę҉ ̸̕͞͝d̵̨̛҉҉o͡͞͏͝͡n͡͞ȩ͠͝?̴̛͢"̛̕͞ (What is left to be done?)**

"Many things, Nightmare," Charlie replied gruffly. "We must prepare."

I felt myself twitch out of existence for a moment. **"P̶͟͡ŗ͟͡e҉͏͢ṕ̨͏à̡͡͠r̢͡ę̴̕҉?̸̀͟:** **(Prepare?)** I echoed. **"̴̧F̷͠ó̷̡̢r̶̛͡ ̨̛͏w̨҉̨͢h̛̀͝a̧͠t́͞?̸҉҉͞"͢͠ (For what?)**

Charlie's eyes flashed. "What can't we prepare for? Darkness is ahead of all of us."

 **"̢̕F̶̧͢͠o͏̴͏̶o̸͞l̵͢į͠s̵̵̡̛͡h̶́̕͝͝ ̴̵̷͞c̶̢r̷͏̛e̸̡͠a̸̴̧̛̛t̢̕ų̵̨́r̢e͏̵.́͟͢͠͠ ̢̨҉̀͟Ḑ̸̛ą͏r̸̡̛͡ķ͏n̶̢̕ę͢s̀́s͝͏͏ ̵̧̕s͏̧͝͞ţ͏ą͢͏̡n҉̷͝d̶̶̶̢͝s̵̨͏̢ ̡̨͢͢b̷̧͞é̵͡ś̶̴̸͝i̴̡͏̸͠d̛̕͞e̡͟ ̴͏y͏̀o̵̢u̸͞͏,̀̀́͡ ̴́͢n̸̢͏o̵̸̡͏̢t͏̢̛͞ ͏͡͠͏a̕͞͏̴̸g̀͞à̴í̛ǹs͏͏t̸̢̛ ̷̛y̧̛̕o̡͞҉̕u͏̧̢̡͢.̵̸̕͝"̸̴͠ (Foolish creature. Darkness stands beside you, not against you.)**

"You speak the truth," she acknowledged. "But then why does it feel hostile?"

"The darkness is always hostile, Charlie. I thought you would've gathered that by now." The Night Monster jumped at the sound of the master's voice.

"Maxwell!" She gasped. "What are you doing here!?"

"Bystanding and listening. The demon is right, Charlie. You know that. We cannot prepare for what lies ahead."

She shot a glance at me, but I kept a steady, cold stare on Maxwell, examining every inch of the master. Only the tiniest head dip showed I had heard. **"̴I͏̕ ̨́͢͝s͏̷̨ṕ̕͡͞e҉̶̕̕͠á̷̸̕k̵̷̨͞͞ ̡͞͡͠͏f̶͟͡r̢̀o҉̶̀ḿ̸̢ ̷̀͞t͢͝h̴é̕ ̴h̶̡͠e̢̛̛a̷̡r͟͏t̴̡͏̶̷ ̴̧̧ǫ̀̀͢͞f́̀̀ ̡̛҉̢t̷͟h̛͡ę̛͠ ̸̡m҉̀͟a̸̕s̀͞͡t̡̕̕̕è̵ŕ̶́,͏͢͢͞ ͠҉҉̵͞a̵̵n̢̕͟͡͏d̵̛͡ ̶̡̡̡a̧̢̛̕ć́͏́̀t̵̡̛̕͢ ҉̀t̷͟h̷̶̨͝ŗ̢͠͠o͞͞u͢͏̛͢͝ǵ̵͞h̨̨͝ ̶̧t̨̧͝͞͏h̸҉e̵̢͠͝ ̴̷̨m͏̧i̶̷̵̧͢ń̷̛̀͢d͟͝͞ś̡ ̀͟o̷͠f͢ ̴̢́̕҉t̡̀͡h̕͢ę̵̨̀͢ ̛̕͡͞ś͏҉̶h̶̸͟͢a̵͟d̨̢͝ǫ̴̢͡w̢̕͟s̨͟͝.̨̀̀͡͞ ̵̢́T̛͝o҉g̴͝͝͞͏ȩ̶̀t̢͝h̴̨̧͟͝ę̴r̸͏,͝͏̶ ̡̕͢w͡͝e̶͞ ̛͡a̧̕̕r̵͡e̸҉͏ ̶́͞ų̸̛͞n͟͠͠s̴͢t͏͢͞o͏̕͢͞ṕ͝p̷͢͠͠҉a̸͟͝͞͝b͢҉̷͝l̶̷̢͝e̷͟.̡҉"̸̛ (I speak from the heart of the master, and act through the minds of the shadows. Together, we are unstoppable.)**

"We can certainly try," she argued, ignoring me.

Suddenly, Maxwell's gaze snapped to the side, just beyond Charlie. "Who is here?" He demanded. "Why didn't you make sure this was secure before you started talking."

"It _is_ secure! Only we can be here."

Effortlessly, I reached out and grabbed for the essence of whoever dared stray into the shadow domain. There was an 'oof' and the annoying ape appeared in a crumpled heap on the floor, just to the other side of Charlie. Charlie took a step back, her eyes wide. He scrabbled to his feet, looking slightly confused. **"̷̨́H͟͠͝ơ̢͠w̴҉̸ ͢d̶̀͟͟͠i̵̶͟҉d̡̢̕ ̧̛̀ý͏҉ơ͢͟͞ų̛͟҉̧ ͠҉g͟ę̵̕͏t́͝ ́h̨͡͝e̴̶̢̕r̴̵̡͠ę̶̛͢͠!̸̡̧"̷̷̶̧̡** **(How did you get here!?)** I roared.

"I walked," Wilbur replied, his chin lifted slightly. Maxwell clenched his fists as he glared at the trespasser. "And before you get all grumpy, I managed to get here because I used to be your 'minion'."

Charlie glanced at Maxwell, and he shrugged. "The monkey will soon be dead. Ignore him."

Her gaze drifted to me, and I didn't even acknowledge her with a blink. She was stupid, but she was all I had, and I had to keep my anger under control. **"̧͠W̴̢̢͢͏h̷̸͏͢à͏̕͢t͝҉͢ ̡a̸̸̧͢r̸͡ȩ̨͢͠҉ ̸w͏̢̀͠͡e͟҉̵͢͝ ͏̨g̴̢̡͝͏ò̧͠i̸̕͟ǹ̷̡̧҉g̵̴ ͠t̴̷̸̷͡ò͏̷̧̀ ̨͡d͢ơ̡̧ ̸̨a̴̢͢͡b͠҉o̧u̵̢̢͡҉t̕҉҉̀ ̷͟t̨̕͢ḩ̵͞ę̷́́̀ ̴͟͡ớt̵̛̛͢ḩ̨͠͞e̵͡r͏s̸͢͢?̶̧̛́͠"͠҉̢͢** **(What are we going to do about the others?)**

"Others?" Wilbur asked, sounding worried.

"Silence!" Charlie spat, then turned to me. "Don't worry about them. They'll be gone soon."

Maxwell raised his brow. "Oh? And how do you plan on taking them out?"

 **"͏̷̀T̢͡r̵̨҉̸u̵҉͢͝ś̴͢͠t͞҉̨̛ ̷̷̧̕u͝s̴҉̢̀͏ ̵̧̛́̕M̴̷̶̢̛a̧̨̕̕͠x̶͝͏̸̀w̛͟͠e̷̸ĺ̕͢͠l̷͏͟.̷ ̵̢͢͟Ẁ̶̛͞è̷̡҉ ͏̴́̕ḩ̵a̸̢͝v͝҉҉̕͞ę̸̴̛͟.̡̀͏̨.̶̶̵̴.̵҉҉͏͏ ̕͠m͏̶é̴̛t̴́̀͞͠h̡́o̧͞d͏͏̶͝͡s̵̢̛.̡̛͟"̸̢̨ (Trust us, Maxwell. We have...methods.)**

"Methods?" He echoed, interest lighting his gaze. "It's settled then. Charlie, I'm relying on you to take care of this."

"I will, Maxwell," she promised. "I will."

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

Almost as soon as they appeared... they disappeared. The odd cloud of black shadow and Maxwell were gone faster than I could blink, leaving me alone with Charlie, who was looking down at her hand, studying a golden ring on her finger. When the black beast was not near her, she was a different person in deed. She turned to look at me, and I instinctively flinched. "Methods?" I echoed. "Charlie, what are you planning to do?"

She looked down at the ring again, taking it off and putting it in the palm of her hand. She clenched her fists. "What I have to, Wilbur."

"Why are you so set on taking us out?"

She closed her eyes for a long moment. "Because I'm in as much danger as you... and your friends. Tell me, why did you betray Maxwell?" She went on, opening her eyes again. "Why did you choose their side, when you have always been one with the Darkness?"

"One can only stay in the darkness for so long before going blind," I replied solemnly, the tip of my tail twitching. Physical injuries affected no one in this plane of existence. "I thought it was time to reach out for the light. Surely even Maxwell is tiring of the Nightmare Throne?"

She dropped the ring. "We all tire of this world eventually," she said after a minute. "But that does not mean we can just... not be here anymore. There are still things to be done, lives to be completed, goals to be accomplished."

"Things to be done? Things to be done! Like what? Getting ourselves killed one way or another!? Watching each other disappear with no way to save them!? Knowing your friend will never have a proper chance at life!? Charlie, the only goal of the Darkness is to make sure _nothing_ foretold in the Ancients happens. I'm tired of spending my time ruining others lives... throwing people into volcanoes... that's not me anymore!"

She sighed heavily. "Forget I said anything. Nighttime is short, daytime is coming... just remember... all you can do is prepare for what's ahead. Unlike me, the Darkness isn't fighting for you anymore. It wants you _dead_... I hope you can understand the difference. Go now, before Nightmare... before Nightmare gets you too..."

"Forget you said anything!" I echoed. "How could I forget?" She didn't reply, and it took a second to realize I was waking up and had actually murmured it. I blinked my eyes open to see Nick staring at me, confused.

"What are you babbling about?" He asked.

Feeling a stab of disappointment as I tried to flick my tail and failed, I struggled to my paws, heart pounding. "What did I say?"

"Something about forgetting... what are you trying to forget?" His bright blue eyes flashed.

"It's... nothing," I sighed. I almost followed with a 'forget I said anything', but stopped myself just in time, my mouth half-open.

"Well wake up then. It's almost noon! Webber and I went out at dawn to see if we could find Wilson."

"Did you find him?"

"Yes, we did," came the spider's snarl. "But he was looking for something." He was standing on the other side of the clearing, sharpening his spear.

Nick flipped around to face him. "You found him? Why didn't you tell me!?"

He shrugged. "Like we said, he was looking for something. It seemed _awfully_ important, and we didn't want to... _ruin_ that for him too."

Nick was obviously angry, his shoulders were tense, but he was facing away from me, so his facial expression was impossible to read. "Where was he?" The warrior demanded.

"The swamp," he answered chilly.

 _That's all I need to know._ I looked quickly at the leader of the Revolution and stubborn nine-year old glare at each other. If Webber wouldn't be of any help, surely I could manage to find him as well. I had better hearing than he did anyway- I wasn't sure if that was a spider trait or the fact he was half-human that dulled his senses beyond any animals I knew, other than humans. I began to slink away, but they weren't ignoring me as much as I thought they were, and a second later, Webber pounced on my tail and stood on it. I tried in vain to yank my tail back, but to no avail. "Can you-uh-please get off of my tail. It's very uncomfortable," I tried again.

"No," he replied bluntly. "You can't even feel your tail."

That was true, but it was still uncomfortable on my spine up to the break, which was right at the base of my tail. _It's a good thing that it wasn't snapped higher up!_ I thought with relief. _I only lost my tail. It could've been so much worse. Heck, I could've_ died. I tugged once more on my tail. "Please? I promise I'll be good and sit quietly and devise an evil plan on how to escape, hehehe."

"Now you're definitely not getting away."

I groaned, then laid down in defeat with my chin resting on my forepaws. "Oh no, I'm so terrified! The big bad spider is standing on my tail. Whatever shall I do?" With a swift movement, I had knocked his feet out from under him with my back legs, then kicked him away before he could fall on me. Free, I scrabbled back to my paws and locked eyes with him. There was a rumbling noise deep in his throat, but this time I knew for a fact it was not a purr. I glimpsed the sheen of white claws as well. _Whelp, he's about to attack_ , I thought, flashing my own claws at him. _Well I'm ready for you. I've squashed thousands of spiders in my time, you are no exception._ He walked around me in a half circle, slowly spiraling closer to me. Once he was close enough, he lashed out at me.

I dodged his attack nimbly by rolling in between his legs, then lashed him across his back. He let out a cry of shock, and flipped around to meet me, managing to cuff me in the side of my head, claws still unsheathed. This is what prime apes were built for- fighting. I launched myself at him and buried my teeth in his shoulder. He threw me off easily, but I managed to still do damage to him. He clenched his teeth and held the newly opened wound for a second before once again lashing out at me, missing my eyes by a hair. _He's actually trying to kill and/or blind me!_ I nearly tripped over my tail, cursing it yet again. It was always so useful in combat!

I flipped around him again, slicing all out at the back of his knees and heels. As soon as I managed to make him fall I leaped on top of him, pinning him down with my weight, and rested my front claw on the side of his throat. "That was fun," I commented, bored. He reared up again and caught the inside of my mouth, ripping a gash in the inside of my cheek. The strong metallic taste of blood overwhelmed my senses for a second, which he took advantage of by launching a flurry of vicious attacks on my face, throat, and stomach. Instantly on the defensive- and confused to why he was trying so hard to kill me when I thought we had finally gotten on good-ish terms- I shielded my face and neck and kicked him away, then scrambled to stand in a bipedal position. By now, his pelt was clumped and wet with blood and dust, his whiskers dripping with blood, and his claws were clogged with brown and tan fur. I felt blood flowing from my mouth from my own wound, and a bit faint as bright red streams ran down my fur from several different areas.

"Had enough yet?" He snarled.

"What is the correct answer to that?" I tried to keep my bored stance, but was secretly in agony. "Because if I say 'yes', you'll think you've won. If I say no-"

"Just answer us!"

"Maybe. Possibly. Give me a few days to think about it."

He took a step towards me, his eyes blazing, before his muscles relaxed and his expression turned from rage to horror. "Wilbur!" He cried. "Are you alright?"

I wiped blood from my mouth. "Uuh... _y-yes_ , yeah sure. I'm fine, I'm alright. How about you?"

He didn't answer, but looked from himself to me, his eyes wide. "What.. what happened? Did _we_ do that? Did..." he looked down at his bloodied claws, shaking like crazy. _This... this isn't a side of him I believe I've seen from him before._

 _Methods... when Nightmare was talking about methods,_ I thought briefly to the conversation before. _Was one of them tearing us apart?_

I raised one blood soaked paw, falling back onto my other three. "I'll tell you... you are a tough opponent."

Nick rested his hand on Webber's shoulder. "Are _you_ okay?" He pressed.

"Y-yeah. Just a bit sh-shaken," he stuttered. "We... I... what was going on?"

Nick and I exchanged a glance. _Well, this can't be good._ "Nothing happened," I assured him. He looked like he was about to say something, then stopped himself.

I was hoping that the dizziness would fade away after a minute, it became more intense. I shook my head, hoping to clear it, but suddenly, my legs couldn't support me, and I collapsed. My knees felt weak, but I still tried to struggle back up. "Ow, ow, _ow_ , that bites," I hissed, failing to stay up. An acute sense of sleepiness came over me. _Well... maybe for just a while..._

When I finally jerked awake, I was alone. Many of my minor wounds had stopped bleeding, but the gash ripped on the inside of my cheek still bleed heavily. The metallic taste had reached down into my throat and I nearly gagged, before managing to scramble to my paws and spit out the blood I had no swallowed. Above, the full moon shone brightly, illuminating the beautiful landscape full of berries and life. Even at nighttime, I heard the distant buzzing of mosquitoes, the faraway cawing of young buzzards, and the faint, muffled snoring of the pig village. Yet no sign of where everyone went. My sense of smell overwhelmed by the acute metallic tang around me, and my eyesight blocked by a ring of trees, I was only able to listen intently, hoping for someone.

I was used to being alone, of course. I was rarely tired so I often stayed up late at night watching the stars, and the faint orange glow of the volcano in the distance. I remembered hearing the sounds of sleeping prime apes below, and seeing the glow of angry spider eyes in the distance. Angry for what we... _I..._ did to them. There was another time I was alone, but the memory was so faint that it only remained in small patches here and there. I remembered being a child, cast out for being... different. The first of a species, that was too different for the underground splumonkey tribe. Of course, the splumonkeys also somehow formed the entire prime ape species, but I was still the first. I remembered being carried out of the caves into the once dazzling moonlight, locked in a cage, and forgotten. The only ones who remembered me were the ones who prodded and poked me day and night, trying to figure out what I was. And then they brought someone else unusual... someone with a houndlike appearance at the time, with ebony black stripes against shining orange fur.

After that, all I remembered was this same houndlike creature- who used to be my best and only friend- fully grown. Larger than the trees and seeing me as nothing but a nuisance. The rampaging, swirling thoughts in my head made me feel drowsy again. I had never tried to remember what was passed, but now that I even so much as thought a little, the rest of the buried memories came tumbling down.

Despite being an outcast, I was keenly interested in the transformation of the splumonkeys during certain times. The first person who ever seemed to share my interest I didn't meet until way after. After the Ancients made their once-great civilization fall upon themselves. After I found myself alone in a land of darkness and sorrow and agony. After my best friend and I successfully escaped before we, too, could be sucked into darkness. As soon as I tried to grasp the fading thought of her face, it slipped away, and everything else did too, until my mind was completely empty and I was shaking under the force of what I tried so hard to hide.

 **̸̧̨́I̶̛n̛͟t̷́͞҉e͏̕͝r̵̢̕͏ȩ͠͝҉s̛t̷̸͝͡ì̶̷̢ń̸̷g͠.̡̕.҉̡̕҉.̵̶̴̧́ ́͟Y̡̕͟ó̴u͢҉҉͞ ̴̡ş̷̴͞ę̷͞͞͞é̴͟͠m̴̸͟͠͡ ̨͟͝͠d̶̵i͝s̨̡̀͞͞t̛̛͟r̨̛̀a̧̨͞c͡҉͏͠͝t̡̕e̷͟͠d̴̡́͝,̧̧͢͠ ̷̢͏̕a͏͝n̵̷͟͡ḑ̸̀͟͡ ̶̵̴̕͞ą̴w͏̵͠͡f̨̧̛͡u̸̴̢̕l̢l̢͟҉y̶̸̕͠ ̷̨͡͠f̵̧̕ą̵̴͠͝ŕ̵̡́ ̴͠f̵̀́͠͝r̴̸͠͠҉o͏̨m̧͞ ̧͢͟͏̸h̢ǫ̸̷́m̴̡ȩ̛̛̀̕,̷̧̡͠ ҉͝l̴i҉̸̨t̸̢̀͟͟ţ̀ĺ̴́e̵͞ ̡̢̢̕͡c̷̶̢̛r̡̛ȩ͝ą̸̀͟͡ţ̶u̢̡̡ŗ̵̶e̶̷̡͢.̶̷̢̀͢"̷̡҉̷͡**

I flipped around, terror pounding in my chest. "What!? Who are you!?"

 **"̶͞Ǫ̕h̢̀,̷́͠͠͠ ͏͡͠f͏̵̨̨o͏̵̛̕͢r̨͏҉ģ͏͝͠͡í́͞v̷̵̷̴̧ȩ̵̴̛̛ ̵̴̵̢m̵̵y̧̡͟͠͞.̵̡̡́́.̶̨.҉̴̨̕͞ ̴͢͠i͏m̶̵p̸͏̶̨ùl̵̨ş̶͏͟i̧҉̧v͏̸e҉̢̛͟͠n͠e̶̶̕͟͢s҉̛͢҉ş̡͢͝.̛̕͡͡҉"̵̵́͡**

Something in my head seemed to click, and as it did, the darkness shifted slighlty.

 **"C̀an̡ ͞you̵ u͝n̴der͏s͠t҉a҉n͠d n̸o̵ẃ?̛"**

I nodded, terrified, still trying to find who was speaking.

 **"́G̶ood.͏..̛ I f͟eel w͢e̡ w҉i̕l̕l ͞b̷ećom͞ȩ well͝ ̷a̴cqu҉ąinted̨ ̶in th̡e ̕f̴utu͠re..̶.̛ ̨I wa͏ntéd̢ to̶ h͝e̛l̵p̢ y̕o͟u͞ ͠a b̛i͞t..͝.̸ fi҉rst̸ ͏i͞mp̨r̴és͠si̛on,̴ yo͞u̷ ķn̡ow?͠ ̢All ͝Ì ̧w͞a̷n͠t̸ yo͢u͝ t̶o͡ ̡k̸ńo̵w i̡s̴.̕.͢.҉ B͡ȩ ̛c̷a̡ref̀ul ̷w̧ith ̵w̢ḩa͏t͡ ͏yoư se̛e͏ in ̴t҉he ḑa҉r͝k͝n̶ęss, and͡ what ̷y̢o̡ų canno̵t ̛i͝ǹ ҉t͠h͡e͡ ̸l̴ig̷ht...̶ Th̛is̸ i̧s͠ goi̶ng̢ t̛o̢ ͏b̸e҉ ҉t͏h̵rill͢i̴ńg."҉**

"Thrilling?" I questioned, but the darkness was slipping away. _Be careful with what you see in the darkness, and what you cannot on the light..._

"Hey, are you awake?" I heard someone ask me. I buried my face under my arm.

"No..." I mumbled.

"Oh, then I guess we'll just leave without you," he teased, and I groggily opened my eyes.

"Wilson!" I cried, instantly awake. "Where have you _been_?"

"Out," the scientist replied, helping me up. "You look pretty beat up. What happened?"

I glanced around, and managed to catch Webber's eyes. His gaze seemed to say 'Please don't tell him'. "I fell into a thorn bush," I lied smoothly. "It fought back viciously."

He shook his head, sighing.

"It started it. It caught my tail," I went on. _Hah. I didn't tell him_ and _I called you a bush. Hahaha._

Nick looked like he wanted to say something, but didn't.

"So, were you a good Wilson and find the things while you were out?"

"Well- _yeah_ , sorry it took so long." He shrugged. "The wooden thing blocked out all of the other items, but at least I was able to put it together. And by that I mean put them on the thing and hope that Webber puts it together," he grinned back at the spider, who refused to meet his gaze. He shrugged again, then beckoned us towards him. "Come on, I know the shortest way."

Turns out, all of the other things were through the wormhole, and none of us were happy to go back through _that_ thing. As usual, as soon as the broken Teleportato was in sight, Webber visibly sped up to almost a run, and seemed in a hurry to rebuild it. Right before activating it, though, he stopped, his hands shaking, then looked out, past the trees. I barely heard him say "I'm so sorry, Erika..." before the runes began to glow and the shadow hands reached out to drag us under. I managed to shoot a glance at Webber just before it took me, and I realized his face was contorted with pain, and his eyes were squeezed tightly closed, as thought trying not to look at what he was leaving.

My vision went dark, and panic set in as I realized I had not fainted yet.

 _ **Be careful with what you see in the darkness, and what you cannot on the light...**_


	92. Chapter 72 Denial

_**A/N:**_ **...I was listening to Devil Went Down to Georgia Guitar Hero III version while writing this... don't judge me. ALSO! I was thinking... and discussing with a friend... would you guys like to see a short story, like maybe only a few chapters about like... I don't know... Popsicle's parents? I mean... he was a baby when he was introduced, so I can't really do much with him, but I think that maybe his parents have potential... Please tell me what you guys think of this. I'd love to write this, but maybe you guys don't want that, so if you guys don't, I won't. -shrugs-**

 _ **Popsicle's POV**_

"Pyrite..." I murmured. My sides felt bruised and I felt a thin stream of warm liquid trickling down around my ear. "Pyrite... no..."

"Popsicle! Popsicle get up!" I felt something nudging me furiously, trying to get me to stand up, but I was too dazed to recognize the voice. "Please... please don't die on me. Can you hear me?"

Pyrite was dead... and it was all my fault. One by one, my senses came to, but I still didn't open my eyes. "I'm sorry..."

"Popsicle, can you understand me? Can you hear me? Please, get up!" My eyes fluttered open, and I found myself gazing into the face of a certain lavae.

"Pyrite?" I croaked, my throat burning and chest feeling broken. "How... how are you alive? I s-saw you! And... the water..."

"I got away just before the flood hit!" She cried, nuzzling my jaw. "But I looked back and saw you getting hit! I was worried..."

"I thought you were dead!" I tried to scrabble to my paws, but my bruised legs could hardly hold me up. She squeaked, then rushed to me and tried to help me up. I couldn't help imagine the Dragonfly, in her emerald beauty. Was that all just a dream? Was _I_ the one dying? Had I actually met the Dragonfly?

"Well, the rain's stopped," she told me quietly. "Maybe we should go back?"

I tried to take a step forward, but pain shot through me as I moved and I had to sit down. "I don't think I can," I rasped, spotting a water puddle nearby and forcing myself to move over to it and bend down to lap at the refreshing liquid. It seemed to give me more strength and I drank as much as I could.

"Well, that's alright," she answered cheerfully, glancing into the puddle at her own unharmed self. "But... what if something like that happens again?"

"It won't," I replied strongly. "I'll make sure it won't." I managed to stand properly, feeling much better. I flipped my head to the side as I heard distant footsteps. "Did you hear that?"

"This sounds familiar," she commented. "but yes... I think it's just spiders though, nothing to worry about."

Instantly on the defensive, I tried to hide my injuries and tried to look in the darkest corners, leaping in front of Pyrite with a snarl. "Show yourselves!" I barked. I would not let anything hurt my Pyrite again. Much to my surprise, only a single spider dropped down, one I had never seen before at that. It's fur was white and silky, then seemed to come to natural points on the sides of its head and a slightly taller one on the top of its head. It eyes were pinkish-red. It said something hopefully in spider, but I shook my head at her-at least, I thought it was a her.

She stomped, frustrated, then aimed a snarl up at the ceiling. Almost instantly, two more similar spiders- but these with eyes blood red- dropped down next to her. I squinted at the cave roof, trying to spot any more spiders, but if they were up there, they kept their snow white pelts well hidden. She gestured and snarled to the two spiders, and one instantly turned around to me. "Hound?" It questioned.

I was too stunned to reply. A spider that could speak hound?

"Yes," Pyrite told them, but they ignored her.

" _Hound_?" It asked, a bit more forcefully. I managed a curt nod. It relaxed. "Speak hound?"

"Yes," I answered quietly.

"Name?"

"I'm Popsicle," I answered uneasily. "This is Pyrite."

"Popsicle..." it echoed. The spider with the pink eyes looked shocked as the talking one reported to her. She took a few steps towards me, and I stiffened, but didn't move away from my position on front of Pyrite. Slowly, she reached out and ran a claw gently down my flank, much like how I saw the Dragonfly petting her daughter in my apparent dream. Something clicked in me as she did so, and her image almost seemed to flicker, and in her place stood a young girl with warm amber eyes and long brown hair down to her thighs. The image was quickly replaced by the normal spider again, and she slowly retracted her leg again, her eyes wide. She said something quickly to the hound-speaking spider, and he bowed lightly to her.

"Introduce ourselves. Leader Erika," he bowed again to the female spider. "I Slinger, this Slasher. Commanders to Leader. Erika wishes to ask questions."

"Oh... I'd love to stay," I said, slowly backing away, still slightly freaked out by the image of the little girl. "But... we've got to go..."

"Already? Tired... hungry?"

I tried to clear my head of thoughts of sleep-not pain induced- and food. "N-No, w-we're good."

Pyrite blinked up at me. "I wouldn't mind proper rest and food," she chirped.

I sighed, really not wanting to show weakness to the spiders, but Pyrite's hopeful gaze forced my paw. "Okay... Okay Pyrite's right. We'll go with you."

The translating spider answered back to Erika, who nodded, then looked at me and frantically asked another question. Slinger looked shocked, then turned back to me. "Erika ask... you know brother?"

"Brother?" I echoed. Beside Erika, Slasher looked quite like he wanted to chop my face off. Erika's eyes were wide.

"Brother," Slinger confirmed. "Webber."

 _Oh!_ That's _his sister!_ What were the odds that the first creature to find us was my owner's sister! "Oh, yeah, I knew him," I answered casually with a nod.

"Alright?"

"He's fine... Last time I saw him." I scratched my ear with a hind paw. "He and his friends have been gone for awhile."

"Gone..?" Slinger looked concerned. "What happened?"

I raised my chin. "They had a destiny to fulfill, Slinger," I told him earnestly. "We couldn't change it. They're alive." _For now... as far as I know..._

He blinked. "Guess good news."

Erika looked less than happy at the report, but sighed and shook her head, closing her eyes and growling something in a 'he always got himself in trouble' tone of voice. When she opened her eyes again, she beckoned Pyrite and I to her with her front legs, then scurried her way through the pitch black cave. I could hear Slinger babbling in his grammatically incorrect way of speaking in the background, but I found myself paying more closely attention to the warmth of Pyrite next to me. _You rejected me in my dream... but maybe it was just a dream. Maybe..._ I shook my head. _I_ saw _the Dragonfly._ I reminded myself sharply. _Remember... remember the Dragonfly. That will be Pyrite one day._

Despite this thought, my heart still ached. _Maybe in time... you'll want to be mine._

"Are you okay?" She asked gently, eyes fixed ahead.

"Okay? Yeah, I'm okay. What about you?"

She turned to me and blinked. "Popsicle... you can't keep wondering about the future," she purred softly. "It'll distract you from the present?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just let me go."

I opened my mouth to reply to her, confused, when another odd-looking spider crawled up to me. This one had dark, unkempt fur, and teeth sharp as stalactites protruding from a half-open mouth. "Hound. What is your name?"

"You... you can speak proper hound!" I exclaimed.

"Yes. My name is Hash... what's your name?" He pressed a bit more forcefully.

"M-My name's Popsicle. And this is Pyrite," I nudged the lavae next to me.

He raised his brow. "Who are you talking about?" He snarled. "Don't play games with me, hound."

"I'm not. And I'm talking about _Pyrite_ , the lavae that's been with me the whole time? Pyr-" I stopped. The space next to me was empty. "Haha, funny Pyrite. Where did you go?"

Slinger walked back to me, eyeing me. "Who? Mentioned a Pyrite earlier... who?"

"Pyrite!" I barked. "The lavae from earlier! Where did she go I'm supposed to protect her-"

"Hound... there was no lavae," Hash told me liked I was a barely weened pup. "You've been talking to yourself this whole time."

 _ **A/N:**_ **I'm sorry, it was a dare I swear XD I was like "I'll name one Slinger" and then somehow I was dared to have 'Hash', 'Slinger', and 'Slasher'... Friends?**

 **This chapter was almost called El** **Mañana =P**


	93. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 1

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 **_Webber's POV_**

 **** _Don't jinx it. Don't jinx it!_ My mind cried.

 _"Oh..."_

"You insolent, pitiful, insignificant ant! Do not arouse the wrath and the Great Maxwell! You will regret coming any further..."

We already regretted coming further. The last world had been easy and nice, but knowing that we had left behind the possibility of finding our _family_ seemed to leave an aching gap in our heart. We blinked our eyes open, though for a second, we were confused why it was barely possible to see.

 _We jinxed it,_ I thought in horror. This is exactly what we were afraid of. A still, blank, completely silent night, with no moon, no stars, no light. Nearby, we smelled fire as the roaring fire pits danced around us, giving us light, but the darkness around it seemed to suck it in. There was also a few piles of ashes, in what might have once been a backpack, but was burnt just before we arrived. And of course, the smoke rising from around us made it even harder to see. And the heat was _unbearable._

After a few minutes, we gave up, and tried to move as close to the darkness as we could while still being able to see, hoping to get away from the suffocating heat. We sat down, pulling our knees to our chest and rested our chin on them. It was many moments before we heard the others waking behind us. A few seconds later, Wilbur had made his way across the clearing and sat next to us. "Are you okay?" He asked.

 _No! I'm_ not _okay!_ I wanted to shout. _I'm doing horrible things without meaning to! I left behind any chance of a peaceful life! I have to become a corrupt demon just to save my friends!_ Nothing _is okay!_ "We're fine," I whispered.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. _"You have me... you don't have to become a corrupt demon for me..."_ a whisper echoed in my mind. " _Maybe it doesn't have to be this way?"_

 _It has to be this way, and you know that._

He sighed. _"I know..."_

"I know you wanted to stay," Wilbur said with a hint of pity in his voice. "You know there's no way to avoid going forward though."

"We failed her, Wilbur. _I_ failed her!" I cried, grief and anger at myself filling up my chest. "She's dead, and it's all my fault! I didn't want this to happen! I didn't want any of this to happen! I should've listened. I should've listened to the warnings!"

"Failed who?"

I struggled to fight back against the powerful emotions. I hated it when this happened. When everything just seemed to go wrong at once. It did this to me, it messed with me. "I failed my sister."

He sighed, letting out a quiet 'oh'. "Come on. We've gotten this far. We can keep going. I came here to yell at you for jinxing us, but..."

We shoved him lightly. "Go ahead, you know you want to."

"We _told_ you not to jinx us!" He shouted. "And you _went and did it anyway_. _Shame_ on you!"

We managed a half-smile and lightly shoved the prime ape. But... "How can you not still be mad about... yesterday?" I had to ask.

He grinned. "You know me. That was _yesterday_. I'm not holding a grudge... even though you beat me." Despite the light tone he spoke, we realized his words held a deeper meaning.

"I'm sorry," I blurted. "I'm sorry for... just being..."

"Mean? A total jerk?"

"N- well," I let out a tortured laugh. "Yeah, I guess."

He shrugged. "It's in the past. Come on, you know we have more to do than mope around. Let's get up and figure out what we're gonna do."

We nodded briskly. "Right. So. Planning stages." We took a deep breath, then moved back to the others. "Okay," I clapped my hands together. "Any ideas?"

Both Wilson and Nick were awake now. Nick was sitting up, looking confused, and Wilson was standing, looking around the area with sharp eyes. Our eyesight wasn't as good as it used to be due to... well, being half-blind, but our hearing and sense of smell was much better than his. There was nothing to hear or smell though, as the only living things in the area were us.

"Can we wait this out...? Like a few worlds back, when we waited out the winter?" Nick asked, but Wilbur was already shaking his head.

"Impossible," he told him. "I... I had a thought about this... I didn't think Maxwell would have the guts to pull it off though..." The ape looked around, looking worried. "This is Charlie's domain."

I was confused. "Charlie?" _That name is so familiar... have we talked about them?_

"The Night Monster." He blinked. "We're standing in the Night Monster's world."

 _"Oh_... _well, this'll be fun I guess._ "

Wilson looked uneasy. "How will we survive then?" He pointed out. "We have no light."

Wilbur looked around for a second, then fixed his gaze on a certain spot a few paces away. "Not quite." He took a deep breath, then leaped into the darkness. For a terrifying second, we thought he was trying to get himself killed, but as soon as he disappeared a light flared up. It was a pillar, a little taller than Wilson, with a grayish, cracked base and a cold, gray fire flickering on top. "These lights are scattered all over the place," he informed us. "We can collect tools inside their radius."

He hopped into another patch of darkness to the side of that one, another light flaring up as the previous one died down. "Why are those here?" Nick asked. "Isn't that just making it easier for us?"

Wilbur shrugged. "That might be the reason."

"That could prove very useful... if it's not a trap," I pointed out.

Wilbur looked a little sick at these words. "I hope this isn't a trap," he growled. "But the least we could do is stay with the lights."

"What about the areas not affected by the lights?" Wilson asked, his eyes gleaming with interest.

"Simple!" I exclaimed, grasping an idea. "We defeat the Night Monster herself!"


	94. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 2

_**A/N:**_ **So... uh... yeah, this was a *cough* interesting... chapter to write, nonetheless. For-uh-reasons... you'll see soon .**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

"Defeat the Shadow Monster?" I echoed. "How in the world would we do _that_?"

"The old fashion way," Nick guessed. "With our weapons."

"You can't just _kill_ the Shadow Monster... can you?"

"Of course you can!" Webber exclaimed. " _Nothing_ is immortal."

"You are!" I shot back.

"Not _immortal,_ " he responded bitterly. "Just _very hard to kill_. There is a _difference._ "

"Wouldn't we all know," Wilbur said in his I-know-him-better-than-he-knows-him voice, which I found he used often. "After all, from what I gathered, none of us have been exactly Bff's with him if ya' know what I'm saying."

"Hey, leave me out of this!" Nick exclaimed. "I've never done _anything wrong at all._ "

" _Anyway_. I _still_ think we should take on the Night Monster." He pressed. Think about it! She's been plaguing us constantly ever since we arrived in this world. Wouldn't it be _easier_ to just, get _rid_ of her?"

"He makes a point," Nick answered thoughtfully.

"I think we should go for it," Wilbur agreed.

"Let's try."

"But how?" Nick then pointed out. "We can't just walk into the darkness and say, 'Hey Nighty, come and fight me!'. Um... I _don't_ think that will work at all."

"Why not?" Webber seemed genuinely confused. "What else could we do to prepare?"

"Armor?" Nick offered.

"Does anyone know how to _make_ armor?"

" _Well_ , if you guys would listen to me," Wilbur jumped up onto my shoulder, and flung his limp tail over the other shoulder. "I have _amazing_ ideas if you guys would just listen to me!"

"And what is your idea, Wilbur?" I couldn't keep a note of disdain out of my voice. However useful he could be, he still annoyed me to no end sometimes.

"Well you see-"

" _Sticking paper to your chest is not armor Wilbur!"_ Webber roared.

"It can be!" He protested.

He sighed heavily, his eyes were dark. "We have to do this the old fashion way." He glanced into the darkness that swirled around us, then stepped in.

"No! You are still so young! You have a full life ahead of you! It's not worth it!" Wilbur cried.

"Shut up you ignorant ape," he snarled.

"See? He called me ape," Wilbur examined quietly to me. "He's really starting to warm up to me I think."

Suddenly, the light we were standing by went out, throwing us all into darkness. Then quietly, so quietly I hardly heard it beyond the sound of my own thumping heart, I heard a dark, layered chuckle. **"Well. I have waited so long for this event."**

I felt cold fur press up against me, shivering, and I wasn't sure if it was Webber or Wilbur. "Who are you!" Nick demanded, the only one kept in light by the glow of his sword.

 **"I'm surprised you don't know of me. I know of you four quite a bit. A little birdy tells me much of you. Wilson, Wilbur, and Nick, is it? And you must be Webber."**

"Who _are_ you!" I pressed.

 **"My name is Charlie, pathetic weasels. You are all the same, aren't you? Fools, taken in by Maxwell."**

It took me a second to realize that the fur next to me had suddenly stopped shuddering. "Who is this _little birdy_ , Charlie?" Webber croaked.

She chuckled again, but didn't reply.

 _Oh..._ _I know who she's talking about. And Webber knows too._ I reached out and grabbed his hand, and I could tell by the tension in his grip that it was taking all his power not to break down in tears.

"She won't come into the light," Wilbur whispered in my ear on my other side. "We'll have to fight her in the dark."

 **"Dark!"** She barked a laugh that seemed to rattle into my bones. **"You fools! You can't defeat me in darkness. I** _ **am**_ **darkness."**

I raised my spear, but I felt Webber's other hand on it and he lowered its point to the ground again. "Wait," he told me. "W-w-I think I got this." He tore his hand away from my grip and I heard him step forward. "Oh, you're are ever-so-right Charlie," he said in a silky smooth voice that I never heard from him before. "You're right. You _win_. We are defenseless. Of course, we know that you won't kill us. After all, what's the point of dead playthings? No, you'll just bring us to the brink of death only to heal us again, rinse and repeat." He was saying things so simply, so convincingly, I was shocked to realize it didn't seem to effect Charlie. "Isn't that right, Wilson?"

I didn't even realize he was speaking to me until he lightly jabbed me in the knee with his foot. "Of course. _I_ wasn't really dead, was I?" _He's trying to get her to speak,_ I suddenly realized. _He wants her to speak loudly enough to detect her. He's trying to pinpoint her._

 _How can you defeat pure darkness?_

"And if that happens, well, I have friends everywhere, Charlie. Sound familiar? Thought so. That's because that's what my friend Wilbur heard our little Nightmare Throne captor comment. You know what would be funny? If Maxwell's right hand person was destroyed by... a spider? You can't get away from me. The archipelago outskirts? Who'd thought I'm on good terms with the Tiger Shark? The caves, the Ruins? It just so happens the Ancient Guardian owes me- for more than one reason- and, well, would you look at that? The leader of every spider in the caves is my sister. Even in your little world, my Night Monster, you seem to have something I lost awhile back ago. Some _one_ I lost, actually. And if you kill me, there will be nowhere to hide. You will have made a powerful enemy, Charlie, one that I do not advise you making."

 _The Ancient Guardian owes him? How? What did Webber ever do for the Ancient Guardian except swear vengeance?_

 **"Do you really think you're little robot friend can stop me? He's tried, you idiot. They've all tried. And I have the Nightmare Throne on my side. You can't destroy** _ **what hardly exists in this world.**_ **"**

"Oh, excuse me, Charlie," he purred, and I felt him lightly tug on my weapon. I let go and he shifted to hold it properly. "I didn't mean to offend you and your ally." I heard him grunt momentarily and a shocked screech split the air. He landed a hit on her. "Oh! Excuse me again. Butterfingers, you know how that is, right? You've lost a few things- well- a few someones before- haven't you?," his voice was suddenly filled with venom.

 **"You will pay for that, spider!"**

A second later, she cried again, though this time, I was splattered with what I could only assume was blood. It wasn't hot and sticky, though. In fact, it was more cold and slippery, more similar to jello than blood.

 **"Fine, you want your thing back? I'll give you your thing back."** I heard the sound of something hard hitting the ground nearby. **"There is nothing else for you here."**

 _What does she mean she'll give him his thing back?_

 _What 'thing' did she steal from him?_

A theory suddenly formed in my head, but before I could explore it, she continued speaking. **"Let's have a truce. You go to Maxwell, who of course will not be as merciful as myself, and you leave me be."** It struck me that she wasn't used to being attacking back, and was weakened easily due to the fact she was used to quickly killing her foes without being hit once back.

I was almost completely convinced that Webber would ignore her pleas- if you could count that as a plea- and finish the job. However, I heard the spear clank to the ground and footsteps and he stepped back a few paces, one of his raised hands brushing against my cheek. "Okay, Charlie. We have a truce."

 **"Fantastic. I promise, you won't be sorry for this decision."**

"Watch out, Webber, she might still attack you," I whispered in his ear, and he nodded, readying himself to block.

But he was too late.

A second later, I heard the horrible sound of a weapon slicing through flesh and even a few cracks of bone, and Webber stumbled back into the light of Nick's sword, his face twisted with pain and clenching a new wound in his stomach, the black fur around it already turning darker with blood. With a battle cry of pure fury, he lunged forward and one of the lights flared up to show him dragging the demon into the light. She roared and thrashed, trying to get away from his grip.

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe that _this_ was Charlie, the monster that had haunted our footsteps since the second we were throw from our worlds. I expected her to look... like a monster. But she looked like a _human_. Well... not exactly a _human_...

She was tall, and looked fairly... transparent. One of her arms ended in a black claw, and dark flames seemed to flicker from her. Her eyes were black with small white pupils, and she had black tiger-like markings on the sides of her face.

And this was the beast that Webber had managed to drag into the light. And what was even odder... as the light touched her, her screeches of pain became wild. As soon as Webber released her he fell to the ground, clutching the wound on his stomach.

After a second of her panicked thrashing, she stopped altogether, then slowly looked up and stared me straight in the eye. **"You fool!"** She cried. **"Do you know what you have just done!?"**

As the words left her mouth, she hung her head and tried to growl something, but it sounded gurgled, like she was choking. She looked up at me once more, before suddenly, everything went dark again, and everything went silent. For the first time since we got there, faint moonlight showed through the clouds, glinting off of what looked like... no... but...

But my eyes did not deceive me. There, sitting in the faint moonlight, holding his head and staring in shock at the bloody mess of Webber, was a slightly bloody, but overall fine and not dead...

WX-78.


	95. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 3

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_ **(Wow I can't believe I'm writing that again)**

Saying I was confused would be an understatement. Being throw to the ground by Charlie was one thing- one thing I was used to in fact- but this... _this?_ They looked like they could actually see me...

I was glad to see that everyone was alright, Wilson and Nick stood side-by-side, shock showing in both of their eyes. On Wilson's should was an... interesting... creature to say the least. He was... a monkey I believe. With brown fur framing a darkly tanned face, and what looked like a tarnished crown atop his head. His tail was eerily still.

Then of course, there as the spider bleeding out behind me. I knew I couldn't do anything to help him- I was dead, unable to be seen or heard or-

"WX?" Wilson croaked. "Is that really you?"

 _He_ can _see me..._ The moonlight was strangely dazzling and foreign, and it took me a second to adjust. He thought he was imagining things, of course, I did too. I put it to the test by pointing sharply at Webber. "EXPLAIN. NOW."

"He fought the Night Monster," said the monkey casually. His voice was higher pitched, had a hint of an accent I had never heard before, and for the most part, i _n English!_ "What _I'm_ more interested in is who _you_ are. I can tell by the looks on everyone's faces that you're not supposed to exist! Well, that's awesome! The more you break the laws of existence, the better! I can also assume by you _obvious_ concern that you must be the dead friend- well, the friend who never _technically lived_ , haha." To my disgust, he launched himself from Wilson's shoulders to mine. "My name's Wilbur! The Monkey King! But that doesn't mean I _am_ a monkey! Okay, get that? I am a _Prime Ape_. Hear that? _Ape._ "

I shoved him off. "WHO IS THIS?"

"He pretty much summarized it," Nick answered with a shrug as the monkey- _Wilbur_ \- looked in concern at Webber.

"OKAY, FINE," I snarled, then turned to him as well. He had a single wound- a gash- that went from the left side of his waste to right under the right side of his rib cage. At first, I didn't think it was too bad, but then I noticed how deep it was, must have been at least an inch deep. Nick came up beside me, and I expected Wilson to do the same. However, I felt his ice cold stare seeming to look right through me. _What happened to him while I was gone?_ I thought in horror, before shaking my head.

"Can you hear me?" Wilbur asked, but with no reply. He said something else in an odd mixture of growls and snarls, which sounded awfully like spider, but he still did not respond. "Will he die?" he asked in a small voice, surprising me at the mood whiplash from just a few minutes earlier. I heard Nick mutter a few curses under his breath before turning back to Wilson. I hardly knew the blue-eyed warrior, but I didn't even think about how well everyone else would know him. _How long has it been?_ It seemed only a few days ago when the whole... _event..._ happened. There was still a single thought pricking at my mind, though, above everything else. _How in the_ world _did they get into Charlie's domain?_

I flinched as I felt Wilson's hand on my shoulder. "Perhaps we should fill you in on the details..."

It was many hours later when I finally managed to grasp the sheer amount of time that had taken place. It was less than a year, but this made it even more shocking how many things had happened in my absence, especially the impossibly stupid idea that they could take on Maxwell and Charlie.

"Technically, we did take on- and defeat, mind you- Charlie," Wilbur pointed out uneasily.

"AND WEBBER IS DYING BECAUSE OF IT," I responded sharply. "WE ARE NEAR MAXWELL'S DOMAIN. _VERY_ NEAR. WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THIS LITTLE BAND OF MISFITS HAS _ANY_ CHANCE AGAINST HIM?"

"Aww, he's so affectionate!" I didn't even hear a note of sarcasm in the voice of the 'Prime Ape'. "Don't worry, we're _your_ little band of misfits now." I didn't even know this creature and I already hated him. "So. You are the legendary martyr, eh? You're a lot... colder... then I imagined." He grinned as though he had made a joke.

I gave Wilson a is-he-always-like-this face, and he nodded seriously.

"But being serious now." _Is it possible for him to be serious?_ "What are we going to do about Webber?"

I thought briefly of the red-gemed amulet that the Ancient Guardian gave me, and I instinctively reached for it, relief flooding through me as I realized it was still there. _No. Not yet. Not unless things get... worse._

 _"How could things get worse?"_ Aaand they were back. That was one thing I did not miss. That venomous, echoing, hatred-filled voice whispering in my head all the time.

 _Leave me alone._

However, I still looked back at him. _Is he dying? Can he even survive a wound like that? What does Nightmare Fuel do in the bloodstream anyway?_ The wound hadn't stopped bleeding, but it had been reduced to a trickle. _Surely if it did something, it would've done it by now._

 _Is this what it feels like...?_

 _Is this what he felt when I died?_

 _Completely helpless, yet desperately wishing that something else had happened, as though that would help anything?_

And mostly... angry. I should've been there, I _should've been there..._ I _was_ there, but I didn't do anything. I couldn't do anything. There was something off about how this all happened. And even though I was very used to Charlie's torture, I still felt shocked and dazed upon hitting the ground, like the weight of the whole world suddenly came crashing down on me. I couldn't think or move or fight or do anything. All I could do was lay and watch as Charlie brutally murdered my- dare I say it- only friend.

Well, it wasn't completely true. He was still alive... for now. Wilbur had mentioned something about Wilson being secretly fantastic at medical, but he didn't do anything. He just... watched. Something about the scientist had changed, and I was sure that Webber was the only one who noticed it. I sighed, then crouched down next to the dying spider. He was still trying to hold his wound, even in his sleep. He let out faint growls and impossible-to-understand murmurs, his whiskers twitching. I put my hand on his shoulder, feeling a great deal of heat rising from him. However, as soon as my hand made contact, he stiffened, then relaxed, seeming to take comfort from it and fall into a deeper sleep, his murmurs quieting down. "YOU AREN'T ALLOWED TO DIE, YOU KNOW THAT, RIGHT?" I told him critically as though he could hear me.

"After all this time, WX... you still care?"

I looked up at Wilson. "NO. I NEVER CARED. IF _ANYONE'S_ GOING TO KILL HIM, IT'S GOING TO BE _ME_."

He seemed to take humor from this as though he didn't realize I said it seriously. Then his gaze drifted to Webber. "You think he'll make it?"

 _No._ "I PERSONALLY HAVE NO CLUE," I answered honestly. "HE'S SURVIVED QUITE A BIT, BUT CHARLIE'S A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH."

"Well, whatever happens... it's a better fate than the Nightmare Throne, right?"

I turned sharply to him. "WHO SAID ANYTHING ABOUT HIM TAKING THE NIGHTMARE THRONE?" I demanded.

He looked surprised, then seemed to hold back a facepalm. "Oh, you weren't there. Apparently it's some 'prophecy' mumble-jumble about how he's destined to be the next King... He doesn't really look like a king, does he?"

Wounded and clearly in pain, even after relaxing and even though he was asleep, I had to admit, he looked more like a little kid than I had ever seen him. "AT LEAST HE'S STILL MOVING A LITTLE BIT... SURELY THAT MEANS HE CAN'T BE TOO WEAK?"

"That, or he's fighting back... death. Both are possible... and neither would surprise me with him."

We sat in silence for a few minutes, and I took a few seconds to gather the courage to ask a question that had been eating at me ever since I realized they could _see me. That's still weird._ "HOW DID HE REACT TO... THE ANCIENT GUARDIAN THING?"

Wilson stiffened. "He was a wreck," he answered quietly. "He would hardly speak, hardly eat... you two might have had a... complicated relationship to say the least, but it's clear that he cared and missed you." He looked back up at the moon. "Wilbur did him good. It gave him someone who could withstand his fighting, but somehow he was the only one of us that managed to bring out his kid side every once in awhile... I can easily imagine what would happen to you two if he didn't make it." He said nothing about how he would react, nor how Nick would react. After a moment, he seemed to realize that I was staring at him. "Nick would probably take it harshly also. He seems to have this notion that it's his job to save everyone."

"WHAT ABOUT _YOU_?"

He looked thoughtful, as though trying to figure out what he would say. "It would be a tragic loss," he said coldly.

"YOU NEED HIM. DO YOU _WANT_ HIM?" I quickly turned to face Wilson, then pointed sharply at Webber. "DID YOU EVER WONDER WHY HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN EMOTIONALLY DESTROYED BY WHAT HAPPENED? MAYBE THAT I WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT SEEMED TO CARE IF HE LIVED OR DIED?"

"I never said I didn't care."

"YOU JUST HAVE DIFFERENT REASONS. YOU _NEED_ HIM. HE'S A TOOL TO YOU." And there was my creator's part of me. "YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT HIS LIFE. YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR'S. AND IF I'VE FIGURED THIS OUT IN THE FEW _HOURS_ I'VE BEEN HERE, SURELY HE'S NOTICED LONG BEFORE."

He seemed taken aback. "You have been back with us for just a few hours, and you are already hurling accusations at me? Unjust accusations at that."

"DID YOU EXPECT _ANYTHING_ ELSE OF ME?"

He looked back at where Nick and Wilbur were sleeping and sighed. "I guess I should have. I just thought that death would change you too, just as it changed me."

 _It changed you, alright._

 _And I think I'm just now getting the full effects of what Maxwell did to him, all that time ago._


	96. Chapter 73 Anger

_**Popsicle's POV**_

I stayed as far away from the spiders as possible. I had a feeling that if I tried to talk to them-even Erika, who had shown nothing but kindness through Hash and Slinger- they'd end up with a scar, and then I'd probably be killed. I rarely slept. I rarely ate. I just paced. I paced until my paws bled and then I paced some more. A trail of crimson marked the line that I walked up and down every waking moment. I couldn't believe it at first, but now that I fully realized that Pyrite was dead and it was all my fault, I felt infinite anger at myself. I couldn't believe that I hadn't protected her. I had tried so hard... but in the end, I failed her. _I_ failed her. I batted a rock out of the way with as much force as I could muster, but I was weak, and it didn't go far.

Ever since I was a pup, I failed to protect those I cared about. I never met my father- and maybe that was a good thing- but I failed my mother. Then, I failed my master... and now, I failed Pyrite.

"Hound?" A voice echoed, and I refused to even meet the gaze of Hash.

"What?" I snarled.

He didn't seem taken aback. He sighed, then I heard the clicking footsteps of claws on stone as he scurried beside me. "Are you alright? Erika is worried about you."

I kicked the hard stone beneath my feet. "Why is she worried about me? She hardly knows anything about me." I flinched as I felt him run his claw down my flank, obviously trying to calm me down.

"You knew her brother," he pointed out. "That's all she needs to care about someone." He lifted one of my paws and examined the blood that smeared my normally ice blue fur. "And you obviously need some care."

"I'm fine," I snapped. "Leave me alone."

In the corner of my eye, I saw him slowly blink, then let out a sigh. "You need to speak to someone."

"I'm fine!" I repeated, a little louder. "What I _need_ is for you to leave!"

The spider looked like he was about to argue, before shaking his head and scuttling away. Slowly, bit by bit, the unfathomable rage that simmered beneath my pelt became worse and worse, before finally I couldn't handle it and rushed away. Just ahead, a wall loomed in front of my, but I fixed my eyes on a small dark spot towards the bottom of it and forced my way into a cave. It was empty, but it had another crack in the back that seemed to dark and get wider. I was flooded by scents of swirling, ice-cold water, wet stone, and stale air. I forced myself through the crack. At first, it didn't seem to get wider, but after a few minutes, my ears stopped brushing the roof and my paws landed in something wet and cold. This I could easily identify as water, cool and refreshing, and I bent down to take a drink.

The anger at myself subsided away for a few minutes, opening the gates for a flood of questions. Why did that girl appear to me when I met Erika? Why did Erika really care so much about me? What was going on deep underground in the peaceful caves that lead to such lies? Obviously, Erika was not who she said she was. There was something else about her. Something... familiar. After I had drunk, I raised my head to sniff the air. I _recognized_ her. Had we seen each other before?

As my eyes adjusted to the light, I realized that it was an underground lake, with a strip of rock that went all the way around it. Careful not to slip, I edged my way around it. On the other side was yet another cave. I blinked in surprise at it. _It's like someone-or something- dug these out._ Whatever it was, it couldn't have been any bigger than myself. I barely fit myself. This cave I followed for quite a distance before it began to slope down so steeply I almost slipped. Eventually, the cave opened out again into a large dark room. My heart was pounding, my night vision taking a second to work properly. Then, in a sudden bright flash, the entire cave was lit up by what at first I thought were piles of rock, but now each one looked like it had been punched through, showing an eerie, blackish light pouring out of them.

It illuminated an absolutely massive beast positioned in the center of the cave. Dusty tan fur, two massive feet, a single enormous horn on it's face, and two, unblinking eyes that seemed to stare through me. _The Ancient Guardian_ , I thought, terror freezing me in place. It took me a second to realize he was not looking at me, but at something just beyond my head. "You came," he murmured in a deep, heavy voice. "Nightmare lights... something wrong." I relaxed enough to follow his gaze to one of the rock formations with black light spilling out.

"So you're... not going to kill me?" I asked in a small voice.

"Kill? I no kill... I protect. But... failed. Twice now," he nodded to the light, his eyes sad. "Tunnels form, rocks fall, light become black." He shook his head. "Nightmare has fallen... but it not stay down. Nightmare never stay down."

"What are you saying!?" I barked.

He blinked. "You... something has fallen for you, no?" I refused to meet his gaze. "You must know, the spirit like Nightmare."

"They never stay down."

"Indeed. You think everything lost... everything gain. May not understand now... but soon... very soon. Go now, before Nightmare."

"Who is Nightmare!?" I howled, but no answer came to me except for something prodding me in the flank. I desperately tried to push it away as the world become dark around me, ending as, yet again, I was prodded, harder this time. I blinked my eyes open to see Erika standing over me, her pinkish eyes wide with concern. Growling, I threw her off, but as I got up, she did as well, no anger nor shock showing in her expression.

I had to know if that really happened, if that really existed. Forcing my bruised muscles to work, I ran away from her again, trying to find that crack in the wall that lead me to the Ancient Guardian's chamber. My claws fell on smooth rock. _No_. I desperately scraped at it until my claws were frayed. I have to find it! I have to find him! I had so many questions! Finally, I had to give up, and I slid to the floor, feeling worse than ever. What did he mean that spirits never stayed down? How could he tell something was wrong just by looking at the lights? And _who the heck was Nightmare?_ I was whimpering into my paws when something- assumed Erika- appeared behind me and stroked my flank.

"Relax," I thought I heard Hash whisper. "It's been a rough night."


	97. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 4

_**A/N:**_ **Aren't you guys proud of me for getting over my writer's block? XD Or are you peeved off because I'm spamming chapters every day or so... hmm...**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

 __We didn't leave much that night. It was good, I was glad. I just kind of wanted to stay back and watch over everything. Even though we had no actual camp, we- at least WX and I- felt compelled to stay back at the scene of the battle. We couldn't risk moving Webber, and none of us would leave him to die. _Even though that is exactly what might and most likely will happen anyway._

What really shocked me was how Wilson did nothing. I remembered well his urgency and efficiency after my own injury, and some part of me was convinced that he didn't _want_ Webber to survive this. _What is his problem?_ I was sitting by the spider, next to WX. The robot... he was a different story. He acted like he didn't care, like he hated us, but there was something about him... something that suggested that there was a lot more to him than met the eye. I had never had a friend that I could call a friend. Maybe he was the same way? Maybe we both felt like we needed him because he was ready to accept us for us so long as we accepted him for him? I wasn't sure. I had never felt quite this bad about seeing someone this injured. _I don't want him to die. I_ really, _really don't want him to die._

It took me a second to realize how much I just wanted to _not see this_. The great, unkillable Webber slowly bleeding to death in the dust, and we couldn't do anything to help him. I stood up, my muscles stiff. "Will you be okay? I think I just need to go out for a bit."

The robot turned to nod at me. "I'LL TELL YOU IF... IF ANYTHING CHANGES."

I wasn't exactly sure, I didn't know him after all, and everything I knew about him was bad except for what I had heard from Webber... I nodded back, hoping he was telling the truth. "Okay," I answered quietly, turning to move away, to get away from the stuffy atmosphere.

Away from camp, everything seemed a lot better. The night was actually quite beautiful now that there wasn't the lingering presence of Charlie stalking our steps, and the stars and moon cast a snowy glow on the near perfect landscape. Frost that came from the slight chill of the everlasting night sparkled on the still trees, making them look like chunks of crystal in the light.

I had never realized Charlie's world was so pretty.

"It's nice, isn't it?" A voice asked from behind me, and I jumped and flipped around to face Nick.

"Did you have to do that? You scared me out of my fur!"

"Well then listen next time!" The blue-eyed warrior jokingly snapped.

"But yeah, it is pretty." I sat down with a soft _crunch_. "You'd think that a demon like Charlie would live somewhere more... demonic."

He let out a quiet huff of laughter, before sitting next to me. "I wonder what's going on back at home..."

"You mean at the _Revolution!?_ " I corrected loudly, stifling my own laughter.

"Heh, yeah." He looked down at the grass.

"So, what made you come out here?"

"I saw you leaving, and I was curious on where you went." Despite his cheerful words, he sounded frustrated.

"I had to get away from... that."

"Come on, you know him. Do you really think he'll die?" Nick demanded.

"I don't _know_. Charlie isn't just some thing you can get attacked by and _survive_." It took me a second to realize I was dangerously close to tears, despite my earlier happier approach. "Charlie attacks quickly, silently, fatally. She doesn't play games. She aimed to _kill_ Webber." I stood up, refusing to meet Nick's gaze in case I did shed a few tears. "I'd better be getting back."

Nick opened his mouth as though to say something, but shut it again before nodding. "Right."

It wasn't too long before we got back. Wilson was asleep, and Webber didn't to appear to have moved. WX sat nearby, leaning against a tree with his 'eyes' half closed, still appearing to watch the spider. "You probably need to relax a bit too," I told him carefully. "Why don't you go out for a bit?"

"FROST AND I DON'T DO WELL TOGETHER," he responded with a hint of anger in his voice. _Well one's things for sure about him. He isn't the stereotypical monotone voiced bot._

I glanced again at Webber. I noted how tired I was, but I didn't want to sleep. I wanted to make sure my friend was okay. I looked him over carefully as soon as I came up to him. Around the wound, the blood had turned from red to black. _At least it's drying_ , I thought wryly. He was still feverishly hot, but it was better than being stone cold I figured. Finally, my sleepiness began to win over, and, still not wanting to leave his side in case something happened, I lay beside him, our backs touching, hoping the frost that hung on my fur would help cool him down at least a little bit.

When I woke up again, the moon had changed phases. Wilson and Nick were talking nearby in hushed voices, and WX was still leaning against the tree. My back was hot, but I didn't really care. It just meant Webber was still alive... for now. I noticed that, as I watched, not wanting to stand up, WX seemed to get fidgety and uncomfortable. I knew the feeling. He hated being here, watching helplessly as his friend fought what must have been a horrible infection, but he couldn't even began to think about leaving his side. Unlike him, I had never really fought _with_ Webber, only _against_ Webber. Not only was he seeing a friend slip away, but also a powerful comrade who he had fought together with many times before. The unbeatable, the unkillable, the invincible, dying because of a single wound.

"Come on, you need to get out," I urged the bot. "I'll watch him. I'll get you if something happens, alright? I'll send Nick for you."

He looked hesitant, as though not wanting to agree, but finally, he closed his 'eyes' and nodded. "YES... YES YOU'RE RIGHT. BUT IF ANYTHING CHANGES, BE IT FOR THE BETTER OR WORSE, I'D BETTER KNOW IS AS QUICKLY AS YOU DO."

"Fine by me," I told him, trying to nod him off. "You will be here if anything happens."


	98. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 5

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __I had to admit, despite the fact I was hesitant to leave, I was happy to relax a bit and think things through by myself. Everything seemed to get thrown at me at once. Everything I missed, important details I hadn't known, and disasters that I could not help with. _Steady, calm down. It's not your fault... Charlie was too powerful for me to fight back..._ Webber _however... how did he manage to kill her so easily?_ _She could_ teleport _. How did he manage to even_ hit _her?_

 _Stop thinking about that!_ I thought, frustrated. _Be patient... be smart... look around and assess your situation._ I forced myself to relax, scanning the area around me. I was leaning against a tree, watching over a frozen savanna, void of life. Behind me was a frost-laden forest. _The frost is too frozen to give me trouble. It's getting colder. We need to get out of this area soon, but we must wait for Webber to recover. Charlie is gone. I don't have to worry about being in the darkness anymore. I am_ safe _._

Slowly, the panicking started to fade away.

 _I am alive. I am whole. I am safe, right here, right now._

 _I am_ safe.

That was one thing that every time I tried to think it, it felt odd. Like I was lying to myself. _I am safe._ Was I really? Surely Charlie had something up her sleeve? _I am-_ I stopped. Something was crashing through the undergrowth near me. As I flipped around to face the noise, I stopped.

It was Wilbur.

"WX! I'm glad I could find you!" 

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" I demanded.

"Nick's back at our temp camp. I'm the fastest one-" he choked on those words. "Come on... It's... It's Webber."

I stared quietly at him, trying to get more information out of him.

"It's serious," he pressed, his paws twitching as though he just wanted to start running.

 _No!_ Without another word, I ran back. _No. I will_ not _allow this to happen._ Wilbur was right on my heels, his terrified gaze burning into my back, as though I had a way to save him. _Wait..._ As soon as I burst into camp, I ripped off the red amulet. _"It is a life-giving amulet. It will not help you, I'm afraid. But I have a feeling you will need it in the near future."_ Isn't that what the Ancient Guardian had told me?

I barely noticed Nick watching me intently, holding the hilt of his sword tightly. Wilbur whimpered. _You are not allowed to die_ , I thought. _The others may have accepted this, but they don't know the full extent of the power of the life-giving amulet._ Slowly, I crouched by him. It was very obvious the pain he was still in, but even as I watched, he seemed to grow weaker. _Please let this work_. Trying to calm myself down again, I pressed the red gem against his chest. _Don't die..._

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __I knew I was dreaming. I knew this light-spotted forest was all in my imagination. But it couldn't hurt just to stay a little longer. There was an odd blackness that ringed my vision, but I didn't pay attention to it. I was free, I was _myself_ , just for a few minutes. Just for a few more minutes...

After a few minutes, though, something seemed... odd. The black ring seemed to grow, one-by-one, trees and flowers disappearing into blackness. Panic rising in my chest, I tried to lean against a tree just to prove to myself it was still there, but my hand fell on empty air. _What's going on?_

"Oh... I haven't seen _you_ in awhile... you sure did take your time," someone murmured.

I flipped around wildly. "Who are you!?" I cried. "I wanna go back!"

In front of me, blinking like there was a bright light in the room he was not used to seeing, the spider that had haunted my footsteps for almost half of my life rose with a triumphant grin. "You _idiot!_ Don't you understand what's happening!?" He spat.

Shivering, I shook my head.

He relaxed. "You are very different when you are not under my control."

"What do you mean _under your control_?"

"Well, let's just say I've been gaining strength. I've been fighting with you since the very beginning. You put faith in me... and now, here we are," he waved his claws around the black void. "I haven't gotten full control yet though, but I've had a say on your emotions for years."

"What do you want from me?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He slowly shook his head, chuckling under his breath. "It's useless now though. We're dying," a wild gleam of satisfaction lit his gaze. "There's no use fighting anymore!"

"I won't! I refuse!" I tried to back up, away from him, away from the nightmare.

"You mean... you won't _die_?" He slid forward, his voice cold and slithery. "Well then, maybe it's time for me to make the final decision for you!" He let out a low, gritty sound in his throat, then launched himself at me. I sidestepped away from him, but he caught my shoulder, which still hurt from my skirmish with Wilbur.

"What have I done to you to deserve this!"

"You ruined my life!" He roared, trying to hit me again, but I had not lost my speed. "Everything I could've had was taken away from me because of _you_! Because you refused to _die_! Now it's time for my revenge..." He bunched his muscles, ready to attack again, but then stopped. "Unless..." his soulless eyes reflected an unnatural red light, and a smile appeared on his face. "I don't just kill you..."

 _What is he looking at?_

He lunged forward again, snapping at my ankle and then flashing past. I fell over, pain shooting through my leg, but forced myself back to my feet and grabbed his back legs. He screeched and slashed at my face. He was struggling for the red light... life... in the form of an amulet. I had to get it. I just had to. I threw him aside and ran for it myself. With a swift movement, he was clawing at my back, then clinging to my shoulder, trying to bring me down again. "It's time to finish the job," he snarled in my ear, before burying his teeth into my neck. I froze. _Fight back!_ I flung him off and kicked him farther back, and he slid with a snarl. _Get the amulet! Get the amulet!_ I fled for the amulet, but with lightning-quick moves, he brought me down once again with a well-aimed blow to the stomach, agony shooting through me. I let out a soft moan, struggling back to my feet.

But it was too late. He grabbed the amulet, his eyes glowing red. "Revenge... is a dish best served cold, _human_. I've waited almost five years for this moment. Seeing you in pain, watching me helplessly as I make this one promise... _your friends will soon be dead._ "

 _No! Please... don't make it end this way. Someone help me!_

The light flickered for a second as something split from the darkness and threw itself- _herself_ \- at him, the amulet falling to the ground with a _clink_. Then, the figure that had quite possibly saved my life rose, and looked at me, her eyes glowing as she threw the spider back at me, but now something was wrong with his legs.

The spite had not drained from his gaze though, and he struggled to stand, falling on shattered bones. I was not looking at him though. I was looking at the woman who saved me.

"Charlie?" I rasped, managing to get to my feet, still holding my stomach. I wasn't sure how I recognized her; I had not seen what she looked like during my fight with her. "What... how are you...?"

She tipped her head. "Don't worry yourself about it."

"Why did you help me!?" I blurted.

She stopped, then smiled lightly at me. "You saved me... I thought it was my turn to save you..." She walked up to me, looking down in disgust at the spider as he struggled to attack again. "What will you do with him?"

"He won't do anything," the spider spat. "He's a coward. That's why I'm alive in the first place. He was always too afraid to try and fight me." He met my gaze. "Go ahead, big hero!" Venom dripped from his voice. "What will you do? Lecture me on how to be a friend? Haven't you learned anything from being half spider for all these years?"

 _Yes, I have_. Realization suddenly dawned on me. _But not anything he would think about._ "Why, yes of course I have," I told him smoothly, trying to hide the terror in my voice. "And it's not about how you need to kill others to survive, about how my friends aren't the nicest... In fact, if there has been one thing I've learned about spiders..." I grinned at him. "It's that spiders have ridiculously fragile bones." Pushing down my fear, I stepped right up to him and stomped on his head with all my might. _He's dead..._ My head swam with everything that had happened, and I almost fell over, but Charlie caught me, smiling.

"Not yet," she purred. "I've went through a lot of trouble as a... sort of surprise for you." As she said that, a purring bundle of fur hit me in the back.

"Tyler!" Erika cried happily, wrapping her legs around my neck in a hug.

"Erika!" I breathed as she released me. Something seemed to flicker, and she was no longer a dangling depth dweller, but a girl my age with amber eyes and long brown hair. She flung herself at me again, laughing softly into my shoulder.

"You did it," she whispered. "You defeated him."

I hardly payed attention. My head was filled with emotions and memories. Memories of a long lost family... of not one sister, but two. Of actually _having_ family. And right here, right now, I couldn't imagine wanting anything more than to just forget everything else. I just wanted to have _someone_.

It took me a second to realize I was crying. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I should have never.. I should have-"

"Don't blame yourself for what happened, Tyler," said another voice behind me, and I turned to face my older sister, who I had somehow forgotten about. Alyvia bent down to look me in the eyes as I broke away from Erika's embrace. "It's not your fault."

"But... I was-"

"It was Erika's choice to go with you. You didn't force her." Behind me, Erika was nodding.

"I don't blame you for anything," she told me honestly. "And I don't regret anything either," she added after a minute. "And you shouldn't either... look at all of your friends! Think about how much you've gained!"

"Think of how much we lost because I was so stupid! I just wish I could tell Mum and Father I'm sorry..." Suddenly, I felt myself being lifted, and although my first instinct was to fight back, I fell completely limp as, once again, I was held in an hug.

"It's okay... just let it out," whispered to person who held me.

I was too happy for words. I sobbed, but for once I didn't care. I was here. I was alive. And most of all, I was with my family again. For once, I was not a lonely nine-year old spider human freak. I was just a boy crying with guilt and joy as he saw his sisters and parents for the first time in five years. It must have been almost an hour before I was able to recompose myself, and it wasn't until then that I was released. "Thank you..." I whispered to Charlie.

"You've grown so much," my father marveled, his eyes wide as he looked from Erika to myself. "You both have."

Behind me, Charlie placed her hand on my shoulder. "Come on. It's time to return to your friends."

Stifling another bout of tears and a protest, I nodded and made my way slowly over to the red amulet, stepping carefully and deliberately over the dead spider, and slipped it on over my neck. "Thank you so much Charlie," I repeated to her.

"Of course... I thought you might need something to get you going. The road only gets darker from here..." her gaze suddenly turned sad. "And... you are going to Maxwell, right?"

"Yes," I whispered quietly.

"Do me a favor... when you see him, please give this to him." She grabbed my open hand and dropped a heavy golden ring into my palm, then closed my fingers tightly over it. "It's... important. I hope it'll help to remind him of the man he used to be. Before the Nightmare Throne. Go now. Your friends are waiting for you."


	99. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 6

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __Wilbur was trying to stay calm. I could tell. He was trying not to freak out, but he failed horribly. I'm not denying I wasn't also. _Why isn't this working!?_ I demanded myself. After a few, silent minutes of just watching, Wilbur inched closer to Webber, nudging him hopefully. "Please get up..." he whimpered. "I can't lose you. I just can't."

Of course, Wilson was nowhere to be seen, as to be expected.

After many moments, even his twitching stopped. I heard Wilbur hold his breath, then when nothing else happened he actually _burst into tears_ and fled. Instead of grief, however, I was overwhelmed by rage. I clenched my fists, and turned away from him. Nick's gaze was filled with grief for just a second, before he too turned to anger. Trying to fight back the rage, I slowly turned back to the spider.

The amulet was gone.

"WEBBER?"

"I'm sorry..." he murmured, and relief flooded through me. The amulet had worked! I got down onto my knees just as his fingers twitched as though trying to grab for something, then his eyes fluttered open, squinting as though the moonlight was dazzling. "WX...?" He whispered. "Is that you...? I thought... I thought I was alive..." He burst out into a coughing fit, and I leaned forward to support his head. He wasn't burning anymore.

"YOU ARE ALIVE, KID. YOU AND ME BOTH."

"But... how...?" He tried to sit up, but I forced him down again. There was one thing I realized though.

The wound on his stomach was gone.

"DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED?"

He didn't answer me. "I'm alive..." he repeated. "I'm alive. WX, don't you see? _I'm_ alive."

" _DO YOU_ REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED?"

"Not really," he admitted. "I just remember darkness... and then..." his eyes widened. "And _I'm_ alive."

"WHY DO YOU KEEP REPEATING THAT?" 

" _I'm_ alive. Not _we_. _I_ am alive." I didn't even stop him from sitting up this time.

 _He sounds different._ I realized suddenly. His voice was lighter, slightly higher pitched, and as he spoke, I noted the accent that seemed to be appearing in his words. _Heck, he_ looks _different._ I was used to seeing him stand strong and proud, fierce and fast, nearly unbeatable, his eyes glowing with hostility and/or determination, and his muscles flexing.

He seemed generally softer. His eyes almost rounder with childlike innocence, his shoulders lowered, with rounder, less ferocious features.

He looked like a little kid dressed up for Halloween.

"YOUR SPIDER..." I easily put two and two together. "IS THIS... YOU?"

He tipped his head, a smile on the edge of his lips. "This is _me_. This is the part of me you never knew. But I can get into details later." He looked around, flinching as though his neck was stiff. "Where's Wilbur? He's alright, isn't he? And I'd like to hear about how your back." _He's not as curious nor as suspicious as before. Either that or I'm used to him trying to pry information from you like knowledge is little diamonds and we are all diamond necklaces._

Nick crouched in front of Webber. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine," he answered with a hint of confusion. "What exactly happened?" He looked, concerned, at me through the corner of his eye. "And you haven't answered my question about Wilbur."

"THE APE? HE'S FINE. HE JUST RAN OFF."

"Oh! I guess you two don't know each other... how do you like him?"

"I DON'T."

Much to my surprise, he laughed. "Well, that's certainly you! I almost forgot just how much I missed your little 'I hate everything' ploy. I think he'll grow on you. He won't leave you alone until you do!"

"WE'LL SEE."

He laughed again. "Okay, whatever you say. But I _am_ curious... how are you _alive_?"

"CHARLIE, KID. THAT'S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW."

"That reminds me..." he looked around on the ground around him, then picked up something that had fallen into the dust. He rubbed the dirt off of it. "Look what Charlie asked me to give Maxwell." It was a plain golden ring. _I recognize that ring_ , I thought in a flash. _Charlie always wore that._

"You talked to _Charlie!?_ " Nick demanded.

"I talked to a lot of people," he replied cheerfully. "I talked to Charlie for a bit, reunited with my family, bashed a spider's face in..." he smiled again. "It has been fun."

"MEANWHILE YOU HAD WILBUR AND I WORRIED SICK ABOUT YOU."

He stopped looking at the ring and blinked at me. "You guys were worried about me? Why?"

I stared at him for a few seconds. "YOU WERE _DYING_."

"Oh, that." He looked down, as though just realizing for the first time how close he was to death. Despite the fact the wound was gone, his hands and stomach were covered in dried blood. As though quite not believing he was healed, he deliberately parted his fur in several places, looking for scratches and gashes. "It was weird..."

"What was?" Nick asked quietly.

"That whole thing. I mean... I've never _died_ before, nor been as near death." He looked confused again. "I mean... I've experienced really bad pain, to the thought I would die... remember that?" He looked up at me with a half-smile.

I was about to say something when something flew from the undergrowth and crashed into Webber. "You're alive!" Wilbur cried happily. "The amulet worked, WX! It worked!"

"Haha, hey Wilbur," the spider greeted happily. "I was wondering where you were."

The ape stopped as soon as he spoke. "Wait... is that how you sound? Your British!" He burst out into laughter.

"HOW DOES HE KNOW WHAT BRITISH SOUNDS LIKE?" I whispered to Nick, who shrugged.

"He's native, if that's what your thinking. Maybe you should just say it's Wilbur and accept it."

Webber playfully shoved Wilbur away. "That's rude!" He scoffed. "You should really treat me nicer now that I don't have some mean spider to get in the way."

 _Hearing him say the word 'mean' is weird enough._

"You finally took him out!?"

Webber was making an odd noise, which sounded a lot like growling but at the same time not growling. I looked at Nick quizzically. "Purring," he said as though he could read my mind.

"You know what? I wanna know all the details." Wilbur padded around to sit in front of him, manually moving his tail around his front paws.

"Well _I'm_ not saying anything until WX tells me about how in the world he's back," he replied stubbornly. _This is more like him._ "And of course... what exactly happened?"

"Well..." Wilbur started uneasily.

"IT'S A LONG STORY... SO YOU'D BETTER GET COMFORTABLE..."


	100. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 7

_**A/N:**_ **So... this is it, ey? Chapter 100. The big 1-0-0. This is something... I never thought I'd be celebrating. So few writers get to experience the joy of writing a chapter in the** _ **triple**_ **digits... I owe this all to you guys. I really cannot express the joy I get in writing this, in getting reviews, followers, favorites... people who take the time out of their day to read what I have written, and actually enjoy it. You guys are my inspiration. I know, I know, cue long author's note and whatnot, but I'm planning on a long chapter anyway.**

 **I was planning on doing something extra special, but I just couldn't. I couldn't take the time to waste a perfectly good chapter to do something that you guys probably don't care about. You're all here for a new chapter, not some little treat.**

 **Over time, I think I've gotten what every writer should have, and that is legitimate affection for his/her characters. Not to be creepy, but it's easy to say I've fallen in love with writing with this cast. I don't care if this is a fanfiction, this is what I do. The thing is about when I write, is that the mood is massively influenced by real life, and my real life attitude changes depending on the situations my characters are in. These characters have become a part of me. I look back and remember, way back when I first started writing this, I was in awe to reach the double digits. I had something I never had before.**

 **An actual decent story. I remember being super excited for Chapter 50, and taking days and days making it just right. But I like to think that I get a little better every chapter. Every word is better thought out than the last. Every chapter getting a little more detailed and I get a little more proud each time. Personally, I think you guys deserve more than just a 'thank you' for getting me here. And yes, you guys are the ones that got me this far. I never would've found out my intense joy of writing if it weren't for this story, and the views and comments reminded me that I wasn't just the only one who liked it. You guys are great. You kept me going this far, and you know what? Maybe I should finally get to finish a story. Maybe I can finally say 'I wrote this, and I completed this, and I love this'. I've never done that before. Okay, so yeah, maybe a massive author's note wasn't what you wanted or expected for this chapter... but I think some of this needed to be said. You know what? Thank you. Thank you all so much. Thank you for reading this far. For sticking with our little group, for reading this note, for just** _ **being there**_ **. And here's my thank you present to all of you ;)**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"So he's alive..." I asked softly. Beside me, WX nodded slowly. "What did he say?"

"NOT MUCH," the bot admitted. "HE DIDN'T EVEN EXPLAINED WHAT HE MEANT WHEN HE FIRST WOKE UP."

"First woke up?"

"He was saying some random things apparently," Wilbur told me helpfully, sitting calmly on a low tree branch right above me, his tail hanging down.

"WELL, HE WAS MAKING SENSE. BUT I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND... HE WAS DREAMING SOME REALLY ODD THINGS ABOUT HIS FAMILY AND CHARLIE... BUT AFTER WE EXPLAINED SOME... THINGS... HE WENT BACK TO SLEEP." He shrugged.

"You don't like him, do you?" Wilbur blurted.

I was still for a second. "I never said I didn't like him."

"You never said you did."

I looked up at the ape. "He has a lot of growing up to do. He takes offense too easily." I was taken aback by the look of pure rage that came over Wilbur's face.

"YOU'VE CHANGED," WX commented. The words weren't hostile, but his voice was unfriendly. "I REMEMBER WHEN YOU USED TO HAVE TO BREAK UP FIGHTS BETWEEN WEBBER AND I..."

"That was a long time ago," I replied sharply.

He didn't say anything else, just shook his head with a small robotic sigh. Wilbur leaped down from his perch onto the ground by my feet. "So anyway," he cut in. "When do you think we'll be able to leave?"

"Hopefully soon. I don't want to be here more than I have to, no matter how beautiful it is."

"I DON'T KNOW... IF WE'RE IN CHARLIE'S DOMAIN NOW, THAT MEANS WE ARE DANGEROUSLY CLOSE TO MAXWELL, AND THAT IS SOMETHING WE MIGHT HAVE TO PREPARE FOR."

I nodded to both of them. "You both know quite a bit about Maxwell, right?"

"I do!" Wilbur volunteered.

"NOT REALLY. I NEVER REALLY SAW MAXWELL MUCH... _CHARLIE_ ON THE OTHER HAND..."

"And what about Nightmare?" I flinched at Webber's voice. He had woken up again.

Wilbur and WX exchanged a glance. "Nightmare...?" Wilbur asked, his voice small.

"WEBBER... WHO...?"

"Nightmare!" He insisted, attempting to rise. Wilbur rushed to his side to help him to his feet. "Surely one of you met it?"

"Nightmare..." the ape repeated. "It was with Charlie, wasn't it? Isn't it dead now?"

I looked sharply at him. _Who the heck is Nightmare!? How do those two know about 'it', whatever 'it' is?_

"Wilson, Nightmare was a part of Charlie," Wilbur told me as though reading my mind. "It was what made her... evil. But how do you know about it, Webber?"

"I... I don't know..." he murmured, his eyes wide with confusion.

 _Gah! Apparently you know something, but you refuse to tell us? Why would you keep something so secret? Why do you think this 'Nightmare' will be of any threat!? From what Wilbur says, it died with Charlie!_

He turned his gaze to each of us, his gaze becoming pleading. "I don't think that something like Nightmare will stay at bay."

"It's not _at bay_ Webber it's _dead_. Stop worrying about something that can't hurt you."

"Right... sorry," he looked slightly embarrassed, as though realizing that what he was saying made no sense. Only the slightest twitch of his whiskers showed he was actually upset. "Maybe we should do something instead... get our minds off of this whole situation?" His eyes were suddenly bright again as he looked into something beyond the brush.

"Okay, so we prepare for Maxwell... training?" I looked questioningly at the others.

"Can 'training' even help us prepare for him?" Wilbur asked tentatively. "I've seen what Maxwell can do."

"AS HAVE I."

"It's better than sitting around doing nothing?" I offered.

"I GUESS..." the robot locked eyes with Webber, a hint of a smile forming on his face. "JUST LIKE OLD TIMES."

"While we're at it," he joked. "we can talk about how annoying Wilson was after fighting the Moose." Webber grinned at me. "You were very annoying after that battle."

I choose not to say anything, not sure whether to take humor in his comment or offense.

"NEITHER OF US REALLY DID EVER WIN, DID WE?" WX asked him in a challenging tone of voice.

"You're just denying that I always beat you."

"OH? DID YOU? WELL, LET'S GET SOMETHING STRAIGHT," he took a step forward, his gaze burning with determination. "I LET YOU WIN."

The spider laughed. "Let's see about that."

 _This is more like it._ I thought. _If only Nick was watching this too._ The blue-eyed warrior had gone out awhile back. I didn't ask where he went. _He'd finally get to see what kind of relationship these two had._ Wilbur climbed onto my shoulder for a better view. "Is this how they always used to be?" He asked me, one eye on the sparring match.

"Oh yeah," I told him with a chuckle. "Except less friendly competition, more insults, more actually trying to kill each other." I watched the fight with interest, realizing both parties were using moves the other had not seen before. Despite the fact Webber had recently been injured and WX recently... well, dead, neither of them had lost their attributes. Webber easily disorienting his old friend with his speed, but WX was still stronger than him and soon he faltered, panting as he tried to catch his breath.

"Okay, fine. You win," he breathed.

For a second, I was shocked. The spider had always seemed to have endless energy. _He's recovering still._ I reminded myself. Wilbur leaped in front of WX, grinning. "My turn?"

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

 __Everyone was asleep, except of course, WX and I. The robot had gone off on his own for awhile after Nick returned, so I was left to quietly watch the stars alone. I couldn't believe we were actually on our way to face _Maxwell_. In fact, if someone had told me a year ago that I was going to turn my back on him, I wouldn't believe them. It was hard for me to quite understand the events that had lead up to this point, but here I was anyway. I sighed, then stood to shake the frost forming on my fur. I winced at the pain in my ribs. There was one thing for sure; WX was a powerful opponent.

 _Maybe I should go out for awhile_ , I thought. _Maybe a bit of fresh air will help me think._ I stretched, glancing at my sleeping comrades. Nick was muttering something in his sleep, apparently in an unpleasant dream judging by the way he was holding the hilt of his sword, even as he slept. Wilson was, from what I gathered, not dreaming at all; he was still and quiet, unlike Nick. Webber was in nearly a fetal position, his eyes scrunched closed as though he were still in pain. These were my friends, I knew. They might not think like that, but I knew we were all bonded in some way, shape, or form. Each one of them had their minds set on something, and none of them were going to give up. I glanced back at the open land beyond our makeshift camp, then back at them. With a sigh of content, I curled up were I stood, and thought for a bit about the journey ahead before finally drifting into sleep.

I was the last to wake up, and I lay down for a few minutes without opening my eyes, listening to everything around me so I knew what I was waking to before I said or did anything. After determining it was all clear, I rose and stretched again.

"It's about time you woke up!" Webber scoffed cheerfully.

"It's not my fault!" I protested lightly. "The endless night is really throwing off my internal clock."

He laughed. "Okay, understandable. Hey, wanna go exploring a bit?"

 _Exploring? Man, has he changed_... _I think I can grow to really like his actual self._ "Exploring?" I echoed. "Like, finding the things?"

"If you want. I'm just excited to see what is beyond this dark old area, aren't you?"

I tipped my head, slightly surprised. "Have you never been beyond the makeshift camp?"

"Nope! I've been stuck here, completely _bored_ for _days_."

"You're still weak," I pointed out.

"Weak!" He exclaimed indignantly. "I am not _weak_. I'm as strong as I've always been!" He puffed out his chest.

As we walked across the dark world, I noticed Webber's eyes grow large with awe. He was probably thinking the same as I was. He probably didn't realize Charlie's world could be so beautiful.

"It's beautiful!" He breathed.

"I know, right?" I watched a pond from the corner of my eye, but no mosquitoes nor frogs came out of it to greet us, nor the other four next to it. Webber apparently was thinking of something else, because he made his way over to it and dipped his feet in, a cloud of blackish red spreading across the surface as he rinsed any traces of his injury off of his fur.

"So... we're gonna go face Maxwell soon, hmm?"

"Yeah." He seemed unconcerned.

"And... what do you think about that?" 

At first, I thought he didn't hear me, because he just stared at the pool for a few minutes.

"Webber?" I pressed.

He grinned at me and promptly splashed me with a bit of clear water.

"Hey!" I protested, flashing to a nearby pond to splash him back. He laughed and leaped to the pond I was by, landing in mud and throwing up a wave of muddy water. I dove down into the water before it could hit me, then launched myself out of the pond and into another mud puddle, effectively dirtying my fur, but hitting him in the process. Without hesitating, I scooped up a handful of mud and threw it at him. He dodged nimbly out of the way. _I never knew he could be like this,_ I thought. _I've always known him as stubborn, mean, and tough._

He sighed, sitting down next to another pond to wash his fur again. "You going back?" I asked, and he nodded, looking tired. "I'll stay out, okay?" He nodded again, then made his way back to camp. I slipped into the last, untouched pond and just kinda sat there for a bit, my head just above the water. I always loved swimming, and it felt so nice when it was washing the sticky muck from my fur. After I had been in the pool for what must have been over an hour, I climbed out and shook myself. I raised my head, letting my surroundings be fleshed out by smell and sound. Food had become scarce again, which was a huge change from our previous area, where it was practically bursting with food.

Energy pounded through my muscles, and after a moment of gathering myself, I let my paws use it off, to the point that, before I knew what was happening, I was running so fast my paws hardly touched the ground. Trees flashed by my vision, and the grass below my feet with a solid sheet of silver, unbroken by footsteps as we were the only ones here. We were the _first_ ones here, other than Charlie and whoever followed her. No one had survived Maxwell's trials, but we had. This world held no match for us, with Charlie gone. We were the rulers of it...

Unfortunately, what I didn't realize at the time was that of all of us, one of us actually was _the_ ruler of this world...

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __"Are you okay?" I asked, poking Wilbur's shoulder. He had come back late, and was twitching in his sleep as though he was still running. With the everlasting darkness, it seemed hard for any of us to stay awake. One part of me knew that I should really stay awake to figure out what to do, but another part of me was hoping that as I slept I might have at least a second back of what I had a few days prior. I had never been so happy in my entire life, as far back as I could remember, at least.

"Go away," the ape mumbled in his sleep, trying to bat my hand away. I purred softly. This was much better than what everything had been before the battle with Charlie. I looked over to where Wilbur and I had went a few hours earlier. I actually had fun, and that was something I never expected to feel again. _I thought he was on my side... but I'm better without him, even if he didn't try to betray me. He made me angry and mean, but maybe I can show them how I actually am?_ My gaze drifted to Wilson, who was still awake, but too far to hear me speak and he seemed to intrigued in whatever he was doing to listen anyway, with only the occasional word to Nick to show he was not asleep. _Maybe I can finally get Wilson to like me? Maybe I can figure out why he didn't like me, and fix it. I can do that now. I can be whoever I want to be. How about Nick? Does Nick like me?_

The blue-eyed warrior had never shown any dislike towards me, but I still found myself fretting. _What if he actually hates me? What if I did something that he doesn't like? I hope WX is still the same... I wonder if he misses our old skirmishes? He always did put up a good fight._ I always seemed to find myself worrying about my friends instead of myself, and I shook my head, trying to clear it. _There are more important things to worry about,_ I told myself, getting to my feet. As I did, though, I felt something soft brush against my chest, and I flinched, instinctively reaching for the yellow gem around my neck. The ring had also been hung from the chain, but another item had been tied to it. A single, glowing white flower with teardrop shaped petals. A memory flashed of seeing this flower before... _But... that was a long time ago, and in the mainland. How did it get here...? How did it get on my necklace without me noticing?_

A few hours later, when everyone was awake, there was a brief discussion about going out. "You think we're ready to get the things and go?" I asked, shocked.

Wilson shrugged. "You're better now, and I don't think there is anything holding us back...?"

"I still think Maxwell is holding us back," Wilbur argued, looking a bit concerned. "Do any of you guys realize how he is?"

"MAXWELL NEVER SEEMED BAD TO ME..." WX shrugged. "CHARLIE WAS ABUSIVE THOUGH... AND I COULDN'T FIGHT BACK."

After a few moments, the conversation faded into the background. I felt sort of weird, like it was hard to breath. My chest was tight and my head felt fuzzy. _It's probably nothing,_ I told myself. _I'm just being paranoid._ And yet, for some reason, I could not shake it off. I snapped to attention at the mention of my name. "What about me?"

Wilson rolled his eyes, and Wilbur shot a glare at him. "I was asking you if you feel up to leaving."

"No!" I exclaimed, shocking myself. "I- I mean... I don't know. Maybe a few more days?" The strange feeling was creeping down my spine. "We still have a lot to do..." _What's wrong with me!? Why aren't I as excited as I should be? I would normally be jumping with joy at the chance to get out of here..._ I mentally sighed. _Maybe I should just get a fresh breath of air. Maybe I just need to think a bit._ "Why don't we go find the things and leave when we can, so we're ready?"

"I don't see the harm in that," Wilson replied thoughtfully. "Okay, sure, let's do that. You want to go out now?"

"Sure." I glanced at the others. "You guys coming?" 

"Yeah!" Nick looked happy to finally be doing something.

"Me too," Wilbur volunteered happily.

"GUESS THERE'S NOTHING BETTER TO DO."

Something caught my eye, and I stopped, watching it from the corner of my eye for a few moments. It was a single firefly, buzzing around in circles. "You guys go ahead, I'll catch up," I told them, trying to stay cheerful but secretly wondering why I was attracted to it. As soon as they left, I launched myself at the bug. It tried to fly away, and I gave chase. _I have to get it_ , I thought determinedly. It began to rise, and I pounced in the air, trying the best I could to grab it, but I failed. I meant to land and try again, but the ground I landed on was slanted sharply downwards, and I found myself tumbling down the slope. At the bottom, I coughed a few times, and tried to spit out rocks and dirt I had swallowed. I felt bruised and injured all over, but I forced myself to get back up. My head hurt even worse, involving into a very painful migraine. I crouched to hold my head, but I felt strength dwindling from my limbs, and I fell back to the ground.

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __The night was eerily still and quiet. Even the usual chatter that went on between us had been silenced. Each one of us saved our breath for the journey ahead, or maybe none of us could think of what to say. In a way the silence was comforting, but combined with the darkness all around us, it was unsettling. Only the quiet _vwoom_ of the divining rod held by Wilson in the front let me know that I was not deaf. Wilbur was shooting cautious glances around him as though something were stalking him. We all jumped at the sound of footsteps. "Sorry guys!" Webber panted. "I got caught up... doing something."

 _Doing something...?_

I nodded briskly at him, and silence instantly washed over him as well. _He seems off,_ I thought, confused. _He's not jumping all over the place and being annoying._ Even when we were readying ourselves for rest, he hardly said anything, and then claimed he wasn't tired when I asked if he was going to sleep. I sighed, and took up my post against a tree, relaxing but not needing sleep. It felt like days before they were waking up again. As we were getting ready to leave again, I noticed Webber creeping up behind Wilbur, taking a deep breath, and stomping down on his tail. The latter cried out and shot towards the nearest tree, his tail whipping back and forth in rage. "Hey! Wat-" he caught himself as his tail flicked in front of his face, his eyes wide. "Wait..." he climbed down again, turning in circles to get a glimpse. "How...?"

"WHAT'S WRONG?" I asked Nick.

The blue-eyed warrior was staring at him, his mouth agape. "Wilbur's spine is- _was_ \- broken at the base of his tail, so he couldn't move it..."

 _What happened? Did something- or somebody, do something?_ My gaze drifted to Webber, who's eyes were alight with joy and terror at the same time. _Who was awake last night..._ I stomped over to him and sharply grabbed his arm. He yelped and tried to pull away. "Hey! Hey what are you doing?" The spider demanded. I didn't say anything until we were out hearing range and threw him in front of me.

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS!?" I demanded.

"I don't know anything!" He cried, trying to get back but I stepped in front of him.

"LIAR! YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN HORRIBLE AT LYING."

"I'm not lying WX let me go!"

"I WON'T LET YOU GO UNTIL YOU TELL ME _WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED LAST NIGHT._ "

His eyes were wide, shock draining to be replaced by guilt and fear. "Fine..." he murmured. "I guess I should tell you guys... could you get Wilbur for me?"

"No need, I heard the whole thing." The prime ape fell down beside me, apparently overhearing on a branch. "I followed him... What's wrong? What do you need to tell us?"

"You don't understand... if I tell you, you _cannot,_ and I mean _cannot_ tell Wilson _or_ Nick, got it?"

Wilbur and I exchanged a cautious glance, then nodded.

"Okay..." he took a deep breath, and I realized for the first time there was a dark ring around his eyes. "You see, when I had to catch up to you guys earlier... I had actually fallen unconscious. And when I did... I was visited..." his voice caught in his throat. "Guys... guys I think I'm turning into the Night Monster."


	101. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 8

**Part 4**

 **The Night Monster**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

The pain in my head and chest grew worse and worse every second, to the point I could hardly breath, until finally, after many minutes of being in growing agony, it began to subside. I was left in a crumpled heap as I was too shaken to stand, trying to get my breath back, when red tendrils crept across my vision, glowing against a solid black background. Just ahead of me, as my vision cleared, I noticed what looked like a small, hunched over shape. I took a few steps towards it, and it looked back at me with a wide grin. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.

It looked like _me_ , only its fur was grayed out, the same color of the Ancient Guardian's before Nick did whatever he did to him. Outlined perfectly against the dull color were dark streaks of black and purple running up and down its arms. There was black rings around its eyes, and it tipped it's head.

 **"Ít̨'̨s ̡about͡ ̕t̵im͠e ͟w͠e ͡me̵t.҉.̧."̢** It said simply. There was something odd about the way it spoke. It had no voice. It moved its mouth as though speaking, but no noise came out. I just somehow knew what it was saying, even though it was sort of hard, like reading glitched words on a screen.

"Who are you!?" I demanded. "And why do you look like me?"

 **"I ̨t̶e̕nd ҉t̸o tak͡e̕ ҉tḩe҉ ́ap͞p̷e̸a̕rance o͞f̷ ̵m̀y.͞..͢ v͝e͠ss̨el,͡ ̶yo͡u ̢couļd ͠s̀ay. ̀It ͟s̢t̕ar͝t̷led ͞Cha͢r̡li̛e̢ as we͡ll͞"**

It was looking at me through glassy eyes, as though staring through my thoughts and determining what was important. **"T̛el̶l͝ ͏m҉e,҉"͟ ̶,** it said after a minute. **"̧I'̷m ̷cùr̛i̛ou̴s... ̸if ̧y̛oú loo͠k a͞t́ ͢you͡r̡ ̕re̢f̧l̛e͠c͏t͝i̕on..͞.̶ ̷wh̛at ̵do you͟ s̸ee?͠"̴** I was confused by its question. **"W͟ǫuĺd̨ yo͡ư s̸e̴e a̡ ͠h̕ùm̧a͏n̨?̀"͢** Glitches like pixels flew from it, until it had changed from the darkened form to a boy with short brown hair and sharp amber eyes. _That's me_ , I thought in horror. **Or̷ ͟mayb͟e͢..̴. y͏ou'͢d͠ s̷ee̛ a s̵p͏id̶ęr?"̀** Now it took the form I was used to, the humanoid spider. **"̶W̧o͠uld y̢o͞u ҉s̷ee ͝ḿe?͢"̴** The glitches sparked off of it as it returned to its previous form.

"Who _are_ you!?" I spat again, trying to keep my stance.

 **"̕You do̷n't̵ kno̷w? D̸on̕'̕t͞ ̷yo̢ú..̧. r̨e͡c҉og̀nize͝ m͡e?̧"** It taunted. **I͠ am̧ t͠h͝e v͝er̀y ͝ac̢c̷umuĺati͢o̕n ̀o҉f̵ ýoùr͞ ̛N̷ight̨m̴àre͠ ͟s̶pir͠it.҉ The ̴em͏b̡odim҉e̶n҉t o͟f ̨yo̡ur.̕.̴. ͟p͠owers͢. I̕ ͟a͞m̷ ҉th͟e̷ ͝acţu͢ąl ̀N͢ight́ ̵Mo͝ns͞ter. How̛eve̶r,̕ Ì am̸ ͠n͟o͟t̢ a͟ ͏w̛hol̡e ͝bein҉g̵.͢ ͢I ͏can ̶o͢n͡ly surv̵i҉v͡e ̀i͞f͞.͞.͟. ̴t͏ḩeŗe̸ ̕įś so̕meòne̴ t͞ó house ̸m͡ę.̛** He tipped its head. **Basi̢c̸al͡l̛y,̶ ̕I̧ ̸a̕m͠ yo̴ur̡ wo̵r̀s̢t ͡n͢ig̀htmar̸e...҉ ͟wh̀ò ̨i͢s i̛n͞ s̡er͢vi͠ce͡ t̸o͏ y͝óu. ͞C͠h̡arlie͝, the͟ pr͡ev̴íous͡ one...҉ ̸s҉h̷e ́learn͞e͏d to͞ tru̴s̸t̴ in ̵m̕ȩ. ͡Yo͟u̡ ͞will ge̷t ́n̸ow̶her͠è un͠l͏e͟ss͏ y͢o̧u̕ ̸le͝t̢ y̧o͞ur͏self̴ f̨all i̛nto m̧y ̢s̸tr̀ȩnǵt̢h̢.͡** It let out a chuckle at my terrified look. **I̕ k̶nǫw͞ ̷wh̀at͟ ̵y҉o͡u͞ ̶àre̴ t҉hi̸n͡k̀in̷g͠.͠ Y͞ou a͝re ̴t̨h̡i̴nking̵ t̶ha̸t͡ I ̷a̛m̢ ҉j̧u̡s̀t l̶i̸kè y̢o͡u҉r ͡spider̀.͝ ̨W̶e̕ll, t̢h̴e̵ goo̶ḑ n҉e̶ws ͟i͢s t͟ha͝t I̷ ́a̵m̡ ̶n͝ot. ͢Hè ̢w͏a̴ś a͡ ͟se͡ṕa̵r͞a̴t́ę b̶ei͠ng altoget̢he͢r. I͞ ͟a̵m ͝a̧ ̧pa̴rt͡ o̧f͠ ́you n̶o͞w. A̕n͝d̡ ̡I ̴have̶ no ̛pl̸an͢s̀ ̧of́ ta̢ḱing ͡yo͠u ̀o̢vęr̡.͏ ̕My ́g̛oa̢l͢ ̢is͞ ̸to k̶ee̢p yo̸u aliv͝e̷.̴.. ͝a̶n̵d ͡pro̴tect̶ ̷t̕h̴e͡ Nig̡h͏tmar̨e̛ ͞T̢hr̀o̵ne.͢ ̷Çha̷rl͟i̴e ͏ćal̸l͢e͡d ͢me͠ ́Nig̕htm͟ar͟ę."̨**

"Nightmare..." I echoed. "You're... You're Nightmare." I was trying to figure out what he meant. "And... My powers? I have no powers."

 **"̶Ha̴ve̵ ̡y̢óu͞ ̛ev͏er ̴tr̨ie͠d͟ t͡ơ ́us̴e ͝a̢ ̸p͟o͡w̷er͟?"** It growled.

I shook my head.

It chuckled again. **"W͢e h͢a̡v̸e̕ ́m͞ućh̴ t̀o ̴lȩar͢n to͞g̢ęthe͏r̵...̧ "̷In̨ the ͠méa҉n͏ti̸me.͞..̀ a͢ f͟e͞w̢ m̴ore͡ ̛q͡uest̢iǫns f͢o̵r ̛yo͠u̧."̛** A blue light flared from its hand. **"Y̶o͞u̧ ̨th͏ink̶ ab̵out͢ you͝r f̵r҉ie͠nds͞ ̶often̕,͟ but̵ ̸y̵ou̡ t̨h̷in͟k ab̡o͝ut ͢ỳǫu͝r͠ ̢o͞ld̀ ̢ĺife ͝e̴v͠en ̷mo̢re̵. I̷f y̕ou h̴ad͡ to̡ ̀c̢h̕o̴òse̛,̕ w̢oul͢d y͡ou͏ ͢st̴ay w̛i̢th ̷y͝ou̧r ̀f̢ri̢ends̛,͝ who͝ ͢ha̶ve pr͡oven tḩe̵i҉r̷ ĺoyalty̨ ͝ţo ͝ỳòu ̡ov̸er a̢nd ́ovér?͡"**

It changed figure again, this time staring at me with wild satisfaction in its eyes at seeing my reaction. It had changed to look like WX, the hole in his torso clearly visible from the Ancient Guardian's wound. After a few seconds, it launched himself at me, changing shape just before hitting me and landing neatly on my shoulders, and I tried to look away from the image of the severely injured Wilbur. Lastly, it took on the image of Wilson, three, large claw marks stretching down the entire front half of his body.

 **"̀Even̷ ҉t̕o̵ ̧the ̵p̨oint̶ ̡o͢f ̀d̕y͝i̡nģ f̨o͡r y͡o͟u̶? ̵A͟n͝d c҉om̴e ̕n̨o̧w.͞ Y͞ơú ҉m̀ay n͠o͠t̕ h́a͟vé ̛g̵ott͏e̕n along ̕ve̸ry͏ ͟we͝l̛l, but Y̛ou̶ ̴cou̕l͏d҉ tr͟us̴t e̕ach́ oth̡er͟.̷..̧ o͟r̷ so yòu t̕h͠ou̸g͡ht.͏"Or ͢w͟ou̧ld y̵o͡u ̵abaǹdon ͠the͞m̶ ág͠a̛in, ̶ţo͞ l̨ea̸v̸e t̵he̴m t̸o̵ şee̡ ̛yơur ̢sis-̵ ̛n̵o.̴.. ̸a ̧gi̴r͝l̛ y҉ou ̷use̴d to ͞kn͞o̷w̨?́"**

Its image wavered, to that of a pretty girl, with deep, crystal-blue eyes and neat blonde hair. I clenched my jaw. "I would choose my friends," I whispered.

The blue light around its hand dissipated. **"̢L̛ia̶̶r,̕"̶̢͡** It spat. **"̧You ḱnow in̶ y͟ou̡r̡ ҉he̕a͟ŗt y̢óu ̵wo̕u̧l̡d c͝hoo͝sȩ t̸o̢ g͏o ̧b̵ąc͢k̡ ̀t͝ǫ your ͢f͏amil̨y.͟.͡. t̴h̵e͡ f͏am̧i͠l̨y ̷th̢a̵t ͏abánḑo̕n̨ed y̧o̕u̕ years̸ ag̛o..̕. ǫver̵ ̕yo̕u͢r fr̕iend̡s...̨ yo̴ur͢ ͡f͏r͏i̸ends..̛.̷ ̡wh͡o ̧h̕ave̴ do͠ne̛ no̢th͞in͡g͢ ̕f̧o͢r ́you͝ but͢ to̡rtu҉re͏ ͞you..̨.͡ wha̕t ún͏for͠tunate͡ ͠o̕p̸t̡i̷o͡ns to ha̛ve҉..̛.̨"̀ ͡**

"My friends never tortured me!" I protested, finally getting the bravery to stand up to the demon.

 **"̷Oka̵ỳ... w͡hat͢ ha͡ve̕ the̛y ̕dón͡e̴ ̕f͞o̴r yo͡u? ̷Wh̨at h͞aś ̧Ni̢ćk ev̀er dóne̛ for you?͡"**

Images of him patiently talking to me, comforting me in the last world came to my mind. "He talked to me, without ever sounding mean," I defended him quietly. "He was there to keep me from killing-or being killed by the Ancient Guardian. He showed me that he wasn't bad, just corrupted."

It tipped its head, its eyes flashing. **"Wil̴b̢uŗ?͟"̶**

"He stayed with me even when I was violent towards him," I replied instantly. "He helped me on the archipelago islands, and then helped me to escape... he's a valuable ally."

 **"W̕X͏͢-̵̀7̨̡8͝?̡"͞**

I wondered for a second why it even asked this question.

 **"́D͏i҉d͝n̕'t͞ h͡e͡ abus̢e you?̸ ̕D̕id̸n͏'t ̢h͏e want̀ ͟y̷oų ̴dęa̶ḑ!̛?"͞**

"To be honest, it was a mutual feeling," I murmured uneasily. "In reality, though, he is fiercely loyal to us- I know he is, no matter how much he wants to deny it... he defended me against Wilson when he attacked me, and did so again during... during the Ancient Guardian battle."

It took a few steps closer, and I felt a little sick as its dark aura wreathed around me. **"W̕il͡s͞on͝?̡"͏**

I rummaged through my memory, trying to find something to say. "H-he helped me a long time ago, when we got stuck in the sinkhole," I pointed out hopefully.

 **"̶I̡s͞ t͝h̵at ̵all̶?͟ ͞I̡ ̕w̕as͝ hóp͝i͝ng̢ ͡fơr͏ ̀s̨om̸et҉h̷i͢ng m̢ore͏...́ m̡eanin̡g̨f͟ul.̀.͟. ̧r̀e̡c̸en̶t̕. An̷yt͡h̷i̸nǵ e͢lse?"́**

"No... nothing I can think of," I whispered.

It chuckled. **"What ҉h҉as he̷ d̢o̴ne ҉to ҉yo͞u?"̀**

"He never did anything wrong!" I shouted.

It shook its head, sighing. **"͏Y͡ou̢ ̶ąre͟ s̵o ̸igńorant̀.̕..̵ ͡w̕e ha̴v̛e mu͡çh̢ ͠to le̛a͏rn ̵to̵g͟et̵h̵er. Ou̕r̵ pow͠er̵s̶ wi͞ll gròw̕, ͠and ͞ỳou ̕wíl̸l͟ ҉t͝úrn̸ t͏o ḿe̕.̛ T̀hi͞ş ́wil͠ĺ be ̸ab͝s̛ol̢u͠tély̵ ͝th͝ri̸l͢lìn͏g̨.̷"**

It raised its hand, a small dark ball forming in the palm of it, and I felt myself being thrown far back and upon hitting the bottom of the void, rolled over several times before laying still, pain shooting through my entire body. I was still for a few minutes, afraid to move as I was sure my ribs were broken. Someone grabbed my arm, bringing me to my feet and I flinched at the pain. I looked up to see Charlie. "W.. what are you doing here?" I coughed.

"I noticed you just met Nightmare," she murmured, stepping back a few paces to let me stand on my own. "And... it just told you what's happening to you..."

"What _is_ happening?" I cried. "I don't know! I didn't learn anything from it!"

She let out a soft 'oh'. "You see, Nightmare isn't something that can be _killed_. He moves from puppet to puppet. And the puppet is the Night Monster."

"And I am the puppet," I finished slowly. "So I am the Night Monster..."

She nodded once. "Nightmare gains more power each host. You'll be more powerful than I ever was, your successor will be more powerful than you an so on." She locked her gaze with mine. "It is more powerful than anything you've ever fought before. It doesn't aim to serve you. It serves Maxwell. If you do something Maxwell doesn't like, Nightmare _will_ kill you. It poisons your blood, and turns you into a being of nightmare fuel. It is a dangerous curse to have."

"These 'powers' it talked about... what does it mean? Can you show me how to use them?"

"I'm afraid it hasn't gained enough power with you to use powers yet... but maybe I'm wrong again. Come on, show me."

I stared at her, confused.

"Relax," she suggested. "Let your strength pool into the palm of your hand, and release it. It will get easier and more powerful with time, but let's see if it already has enough influence over you to use them... if so, I fear it will be worse than I imagined."

I did as she instructed, and her eyes widened in terror as a small, dark, purple orb glowed in my hand. It exploded suddenly, sending me flying back once more. I picked myself up this time, and looked at her, feeling scared, but I just had to ask. "So is this like... telekinesis?" I joked lightly, trying to keep my mind off of what was happening.

She let out a quiet chuckle. "Let's try it, just don't gather all of the energy in the palm of your hand, but try to project it at an object." She looked around the abyss. "Obviously, that is something you would have to try later."

"Can I go back now... Please?"

She was silent for a few moments then nodded. "Come... I can take you there." She grabbed my arm again, and before I knew it, I had regained consciousness in an unknown area. Before I did anything else, I took Charlie's advice on moving an object, which I took out on a twig about the size of my arm. I managed to actually lift it before I gasped in shock and dropped it. I tried to relax and take a step back. I let my senses- which had dulled severely after the death of my spider- roam as far as they could, before finally spotting my friends. I ran up to them, panting. "Sorry guys! I got caught up... doing something."

WX nodded at me, and they continued on in silence. I was fine with it; I wasn't in the mood to talk after what I had just experienced. When they decided to stop for a rest, I didn't complain, but I wasn't tired. I just kind of sat by and watched my sleeping friends. I glanced quickly at WX, to make sure he was not watching, took a deep breath, and called up the energy again. I sat by Wilbur. If I could move a twig...

After everyone was awake, and getting ready to leave again, I decided to take my new-found powers to the test. I took another breath, and stomped down on the prime ape's tail. He let out a yelp and shot away, his tail lashing. "Hey! Wat-" he stopped suddenly as me must've realized his own tail flicking back and forth.

Before I even realized what was happening, someone once again grabbed my arm and dragged me away from the rest. "Hey! Hey what are you doing?" I yelped. WX didn't say anything until I had been dragged out of hearing range and he had thrown me onto the ground in front of him. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS?"

"I don't know anything!" I lied, trying to dodge away but he blocked me.

"LIAR! YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN HORRIBLE AT LYING."

"I'm not lying WX let me go!"

"I WON'T LET YOU GO UNTIL YOU TELL ME _WHAT_ _EXACTLY HAPPENED LAST NIGHT."_

I was considering my options. I could flee- I was faster than him, but that would just make me look bad. Or... I could tell him the truth.

"Fine... I guess I should tell you guys... could you get Wilbur for me?"

"No need, I heard the whole thing." The prime ape leaped down from a branch, apparently eavesdropping. "I followed him... What's wrong? What do you need to tell us?"

 _I can't believe I'm doing this._

"You don't understand... if I tell you, you _cannot,_ and I mean _cannot_ tell Wilson _or_ Nick, got it?"

They exchanged a glance.

"You see, when I had to catch up to you guys earlier... I had actually fallen unconscious. And when I did... I was visited..." It took me a second to gather the strength to tell them. "Guys... guys I think I'm turning into the Night Monster."

"YOU _THINK_ ," WX scoffed.

I stared at him for a few seconds. "You don't believe me." I remembered what Charlie had said about it poisoning my blood. "Why don't you believe me?"

"It's not that we don't believe you, Webber," Wilbur flicked his tail uneasily. "It's just... are you sure this wasn't some weird dream you had?"

"I fixed your tail," I pointed out.

"Are you _sure_ that it didn't just heal on its own?"

I unsheathed one claw and placed it on the side of my own throat. "Do you want proof? I'll give you proof."

"YOU IDIOT, DON'T DO THIS JUST TO PROOVE A FACT THAT _ISN'T TRUE._ "

"Please don't," Wilbur pleaded. "It was just a dream!"

I sliced my neck open, unsheathing my claws again. I knew I was not going to die. Instead of feeling blood well up on the newly made wound, something cold slid down my neck. WX ran a finger over the liquid, and examined it. "THIS IS NOT GOOD," he muttered, staring at the nightmare fuel that leaked from the slice. "THIS IS NOT GOOD."


	102. Chapter 74 Depression

_**Popsicle's POV**_

 __"Popsicle... Popsicle could you please wake up?"

I groaned, not wanting to. The voice kept pressing me until I opened my eyes to look at her. I yelped with surprise to see the dangling depth dweller Erika standing over me with her front claw extended. "Oh good," she sighed.

"H-how are you talking?" I stammered, glancing around. We were in a massive room in the caves, rock arching high over our heads. In the center of the roof, there was a crack that let in pools of sunlight. A river flowed in the middle of the cave, splitting it in half.

She looked thoughtfully at me. "Well, dreams can be funky, can't they?" 

"I'm dreaming?" _How much did I actually dream?_

"Yes, and no, you haven't been dreaming for long, and everything you remembered that happened still happened."

I flicked my tail, then lied my head back down. "Okay fine, what do you want?"

"I wanted to speak with you," she answered. "In private, without Slinger or Hash doing the talking for me... I figured this was the only way to do it."

"How did you get into my dreams?" _Can I just go back to sleep now._

"Magic," she said sarcastically. "Can you stop asking questions? There's more important things to worry about than your curiosity."

I buried my nose under my paw. "Tomorrow," I muttered.

She scratched my paw with her claw. "I'm not up for your games!" She spat. "Listen, I fear something very horrible is happening."

I blinked up at her, not even paying attention to the pain in my paw. "And what is that horrible thing, Erika?"

"I fear the worst. The Ruins and caves are one with the heart of this world, and they are disturbed. Don't you feel it? Surely you aren't just anxious because your surrounded by spiders. After all, you should be used to living among us."

"I don't feel anything," I mumbled, closing my eyes. There was something about the color of my fur that was just _too happy_.

"Even if your too stubborn to listen, I'll tell you anyway. I'm concerned about my brother."

"As to be expected."

She bristled slightly, then tried to flatten her fur with a sigh. "Fine. If you want to be that way, be my guest. I'll try to figure out on my own."

And with that, she was gone, and I scrambled to my paws, trying to figure out what happened. I looked around, realizing that I was back in the dark cave room instead of the cavern with the river. I must have jumped out of sleep. I flicked my tail and lay back down, not bothering to wash my muddy and knotted fur. I caught the glimmer of eyes watching me in the darkness, but I was used to it. _I would go back up_ , I thought. I was absolutely starving- I did not remember the last time I had eaten- but even the light that leaked into the caves through the cracks was _too bright._ I buried my nose, trying to fall back asleep. My mind was too numb to even think about why I felt that way.

After several fruitless minutes of trying to fall asleep, I gave up and made my way back to the wall to run my claws down it, trying to figure out if the crack was there. As I expected, it wasn't. I stared at it for a few seconds, a whine rising in my throat, before tossing my head to the side. I got to my paws and slowly made my way through the caves. My claws had been frayed, and paws rubbed raw, but I kept on limping until I was under the hills, dozens of holes showing a pinkish blue sky; Twilight was falling. I let out a heavy sigh, and curled up in the light. Some part of me- the wild part I presumed- enjoyed the light from stars and the moon. Another part of me- most likely the tame part- wished desperately for the flicker of firelight instead. And then there was a last part that wished that it was the warm glow of lava. My heart ached, and I whined softly. I was utterly alone. _Not quite_ , I thought, glancing up at the surface again. _There are still creatures out there like me..._ I hadn't seen another ice hound in... I couldn't even remember when it was so long ago. _I wonder if the pack would remember me..._

I was just a pup, I remembered, when I left. Then I remembered that I didn't go back to them, and that might be seen as betrayal. I flicked my tail. _There's always Zerp and Chester._ I snorted. _Like I'd ever go back to them... they'd probably just kill me anyway._ I sat up to trace my claws in the dirt that had fallen from the collapsed roof. _Which would probably be an improvement, now that I think of it._ Hounds were supposed to be fierce protectors. What good was a hound that failed to protect? And if what Erika was saying was true... most likely my owner was dead or dying as well. I struck a rock with all my might, then fell to the floor, whining. "I'm sorry..." I whimpered. "I'm sorry everyone I failed. I tried so hard..." The world was too bright for me, too happy. _All I've wanted was to make my mother and pack proud._ I reminded myself. _I did everything I thought was right, I followed my heart just like I was told... and I've ended up here. Starving and alone. Is this all I am? Is this all I'm good for? Should I just_ let _myself fade away?_ My worries and fears and own self-pity began to melt away as tiredness washed over me. I was exhausted, and I let myself drift into sleep. After all, if I tried to do anything else, I'd most likely hurt someone else, and I had had enough of doing so.


	103. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 9

Stupid. Lazy. Thieving.

That was how we were all described. Every last one of us, despite our own appeal, our own thoughts, our own actions. They saw us all the exact same way. I'm not going to deny, there were a few that matched that description perfectly, in fact, almost all of them did. But that didn't stop a few. There was one in particular, who looked down on them. Who wished he was not a part of the species. Who glared and wondered and hoped, hoped, _hoped_ , for something better.

And of course, that 'one' was myself.

Staring across the ocean, the volcano just visible in the predawn mist, and scheming, because I knew, one day, the volcano would be mine. They say he who claims the volcano claims the land and all it's subjects... ambition is good and bad in many different ways. One day, the volcano would be mine. And I could finally wipe the smug look off of the faces of the horrible spiders. The look that said 'you're just like the rest of them'.

Yet, deep inside... there was one thing that I couldn't help thinking.

Couldn't there be more?

Couldn't there be more to my life?

...

"The walls are too solid. Did you really think you could pass this test by going through them?" A venomous voice jeered as I found myself crashing, once more, into a wall.

I kept my mouth shut. She would not know the conflicting feelings I had every time I was forced into one of these things. Fear? Anger? Hatred? A little bit murder-y? In fact, it probably would be best if she didn't know _any_ feelings I had. Emotions didn't appeal to her much, and especially from me. She was already looking for a way to get rid of me.

A crackled sigh came through the speakers around me. "You aren't going to pass by _staring_ at them either."

Readying myself, I turned back to the work still needing to be done to get through. _Just one more. Then I can at least relax a bit._ The floor was colored orange, a color I wasn't fond of anymore, given my experiences with it. I was never simply _told_ what each thing did. I learned everything I knew through trial and error. I sidled up to the edge of the orange stuff. I knew exactly what would happen if I stepped on it. _I'll lose control and crash into a wall... again. Then she'll have another reason to throw me into more 'tests'. If I black out for even a moment, she'll seize it to do something horrible to me._

There were other robots as well, but they seemed to be treated differently than I. She seemed to hold two particular ones in a high respect, even though I had no clue why. She treated _them_ kinder than she ever treated anyone else. I was scrap metal. A punching bag. I was simply there to make her _feel better_. Knowing she might do something else horrible if I didn't move fast, I stepped out onto the orange surface, and my legs immediately shot out from under me, and I crashed to the floor.

"Interesting. You seem to think you are able to walk without your legs." A few beeps sounded over the speakers. "You can't, by the way. Just making a suggestion, don't try to do that."

 _Gee, thanks_ , I thought wryly as I tried to stand up properly. It was like standing on a wet sheet of ice, and it was hard work just to stand properly. And she expected me to run on it.

"Even _she_ never had this much problems," my creator scoffed suddenly, and I felt anger bubble up inside of me again.

 _She was also your daughter. She probably inherited some of your intelligence._ I had to admit, she was horrible, but shockingly intelligent. Then again, she had the intelligence of a super computer on her side.

I set my jaw. I wouldn't let her see my weaknesses. I couldn't _have_ weaknesses if I wanted to survive.

And yet, I couldn't help wondering.

Couldn't there be more to my life?

…

 _What if she isn't here?_ I fretted, fumbling with the handle to the restaurant. _What if Jack called again and asked her to watch Wendy and Abigail?_ I willed myself to stop worrying. _She'd tell me if she canceled again, right?_ Nervously, I walked to the person behind the desk. "I should have someone waiting for me...?"

"Name?"

"Mine? Higgsbury," I replied, watching the person for a second before scanning the area. I instantly spotted her, talking with someone sitting behind her. I glanced at my watch. _Am I that late?_

The person said something to me, and I nodded a quick thanks before making my way over to her. "Hey, sorry I'm late," I apologized.

The girl smiled. "It's fine, Wilson. I was almost late too."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. "Well, I'm glad you understand, Willow. I was worried that Jack called you up again."

She let out a soft laughter. "Jack decided he could take care of his own kids for once. I know, surprising right? I was talking to his brother the other day though..."

I looked at a flickered light, watching her through the corner of m eye. "Brother? I didn't know Jack had a brother."

"Oh yes," she said in a scoffing voice. "He's-uh-not very well known for obvious reasons."

"What's he do?"

"He's a magician, I think," she answered. "His name is William I think." She huffed. "He doesn't like me calling him that though. I don't know why."

It seemed only seconds later of idle conversation and even eating, when she stood up. "Sorry, I have to go. Maybe we can do this again some time?"

"Off to go please Jack some more?" I joked. "Are you busy next Friday?"

"I should be open. It's a date?"

I shook her hands. "It's a date," I confirmed.

As she made her way to the exit, I found myself wanting and wishing, but what for, I wasn't sure. I sighed.

 _Couldn't there be more to my life?_

...

The first sensation I felt was an odd, cold, wetness seeping into the fur on my cheek. _Wha... what happened... I thought I was... we were..._ I struggled to sit up. _I was dead. I know I was. But..._ The first thing that I realized right after this. That I was _really hungry_. It was late autumn. Most of the leaves had fallen off of the trees, spreading cheery orange and red colors on the frosted ground. I allowed myself a few moments to marvel in the beauty of the sparkling colors, then shook my head and struggled to my feet, fighting an extreme bout of dizziness. My mouth was dry and my stomach was empty, but I assessed my food options and was horribly disappointed to find the area void of berries. I stubbornly fought against the hunger pangs, and looked around for something else.

 _Where are they? Where are... where... who...?_ A horrible feeling came over me as I realized I had no clue what I was trying to find. _Home_ , the word flashed in my mind. _I'm looking for home. But... what_ is _home._ _My family- my_ family! Excitement brought new strength to my half-starved body and I followed what my heart was telling me. _Instincts. Rely on instincts._ I slowed to a stop, however, as I picked up on a sweet, sweet smell. _Fresh meat..._

 _I can't. It's already been killed... and that would be stealing. And stealing is wrong._ All moral lessons I had ever learned flowed through my head at once, but my growling stomach solved the conflict between my morals and instincts. Weaving through the trees in a dense forest, all I could think of what food and what was in between me and food. The forest broke out into a savanna, and I couldn't help but watch helplessly as a herd of beefalo grazed by. _They look so... filling. But.. I'm too little to fight them._ I looked, disgusted, at the tiny claws I had, wondering how I could survive properly. _I don't need to think about that. I just need to find my family. Th-they'll take me back, right? I bet they were worried sick about me._ I continued to follow the smell of freshly killed meat, but one thought seemed to break through even the thought of food.

Couldn't there be more to my life?

…

I stood still in front of the gates, paralyzed in fear, and chills down my back. I never would have expected this. I was slowly walking out into the open land, where the others were, defending their positions and homes. I tried to avoid as much attention as possible, which was hard because there was guards posted everywhere, even where the battle wasn't taking as a defensive line. There was a skeleton inside town... shows just how good they were.

I continued forward from the walls of the town until I found myself in an open field, away from the others, but still covered by a good amount of skeletons. I unsheathed my sword again, bracing myself for a fight. One skeleton lunged at me, and I reacted with my instincts, swinging my sword in the air after the dark conjuration. Once more, I felt the blade vibrate upon contact, but as soon as it was defeated in battle, it disintegrated into black dust, which I only absorbed.

Another skeleton lunged, dead, another, dead, it seemed like an endless wave of them, and the fact that every time I killed one, it dissolved made it unsettling. After a good dozen of the fleshless soldiers slain by my blade, I came up with an idea. Usually, under normal circumstances, a necromancer is who controls things such as this. As long as the necromancer is alive, he or she could continue to conjure up these things.

If I could kill the necromancer and destroy the root of all this, it just may be enough to be able to prove myself. I made a mad dash through a large group of skeletons, holding out my sword to slay as much of them as possible, and as soon as I made it to the other side, I frantically looked all over in every direction as far as my sight could reach to find the source of the creatures. The problem was that they were coming from all directions, and found myself being surrounded on all sides. I boxed myself in.

They closed in on me, and whenever one left the group to attempt a strike, I turned them into the dust. I started to freak out, knowing how screwed I was. In a flash of silver, a half dozen skeletons fell to the ground, into a mountain of bones. With only a few more strikes, all the skeletons were cleared, and I found myself looking up at Max, my guardian, the one who told me to stay put. No emotion showed in in his eyes other than pure fury. I slowly showed a guilty smile, shrugging.

"What are you _doing_ here?!" He hissed.

"Why would you care? It's not like I'm needed alive. After all, I'm not what you thought I was."

"Go back to Jorrvaskr, _now_."

"No," I said bluntly.

"Why? What reason do you have to be here?" He asked angrily.

"You wouldn't understand," I said in a mocking tone, narrowing my eyes.

"Go, _now!_ " He yelled, turning around and slashing a skeleton and causing it to fall apart.

"No." I repeated.

"Listen, I-" He started, looking behind me, and pushing my to the side and to the ground. When I looked back up, Max was standing where I just was, looking down. I heard a whirring of a passing arrow, and noticed where he was staring. I saw an arrowhead coming out of Max's back, and the butt of the arrow in his chest. Where my head had just been. He went pale, and fell to the ground.

I looked around, the skeletons were retreating, and the warriors cheered in victory. "Max?" I asked. No reply. I crawled towards him, holding back tears. "Max?" I asked again. He was still breathing, but barely, in short breaths, and he sounded like he was choking. I felt my lips begin to quiver.

"Nick..." He managed to say.

"Max... please don't do this... I-I'm..." I struggled to speak. "Don't... don't go... please." I began to sob.

A small smile appeared on his face. He was looking straight up into the sky and chuckled a bit. He swallowed hard. "D-don't worry Nick... we'll... we'll see each other-" He grunted in pain. "-in a little bit... just remember, you... you'll be... Revolutionary..."

"Max?" I asked, tears rolling down my cheeks. I felt a warm liquid running down my back and arm. A thick stream of blood was coming from my shoulder.

"It's alright... I'm just taking a... a little nap." He coughed up some blood. His eyes weren't focused on anything any longer, just staring into the sky. "You know how much I love naps... right...?"

"Please don't!" I begged, resting my head on his chest, next to the arrow.

His lips were quivering. "I-I'm coming home Anri..." He fell silent, and he stopped breathing. His eyes were still, his face unmoving.

I began to cry again, begging for him to wake up. It stayed that way for awhile, nothing but silence other than my sobbing and begging. That was the last thing I remember before everything faded into an endless black void, a last thought echoing forlornly through my fading mind...

Couldn't there be more to my life?

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

"No, not like that!" Charlie exclaimed, exasperated. Slightly embarrassed, though unsure of what I did, I lowered my hands.

"What did I do _this_ time?"

"You're putting too much _power_ behind your blows!" She moved over to me and placed one finger on the palm of my left hand. "This is your dominant hand, right?"

"Right," I mumbled.

"Then put your strength behind _that hand_."

"I'm _sorry_ I'm not used to this Night Monster business," I growled, too low for her to hear, as I tried once more to create the shadow beam. Ever since Nightmare had visited me the first time, Charlie had me training with her so I could get used to it. She seemed actually quite terrified of how rapidly my powers were progressing. I hadn't spoken directly to the demon again, but I could feel its presence in everything I did, its influence over me growing by the day.

"Pay attention!" She barked, and I flinched, the ball forming in my hand exploding and singeing my fur.

"I was!" I protested. "Until you ruined my concentration!"

She looked like she was about to say something, then sighed, looking down at her hands. "You're right. I'm sorry. I've dealt with Nightmare before, though, for many years. You have to be strong to keep yourself from falling for its trickery." She shook her head. "It's nothing like your spider, Tyler. Nightmare isn't going to be your friend then betray you, nor does it aim to hurt you physically. It'll shatter your mind, your faith, your hope, then it will strike, when you are at your weakest... I believe that I can help to keep this from happening, but for crying out loud you have to know _what_ you are doing and _why_ in order to keep yourself from snapping." She glanced around. "You'd better wake up... we'll work again later."

I woke up suddenly, startled, then slid back down. I had gotten little sleep due to my training sessions, and Charlie could be brutal in them, which wore me down even more. Upon opening my eyes, I abruptly closed them again, feeling a headache coming on. That was one thing that hurt me more than anything else. Ever since a few days ago, it was hard for me to keep my eyes open. I wasn't used to night vision. I was used to the grayed out colors of endless night. I forced myself to sit up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. Everyone else was awake, working on different projects. After finding the crank thing in an area with a fair amount of food, Nick pointed out we'd better stay, so we did. I didn't eat anything- I didn't need to anymore- and as far as I knew, my secret was safely hidden among WX and Wilbur. _My secret_. It sounded weird when I thought of it like that. It didn't really feel like a secret, because the only two I really talked to knew about it.

As I was thinking this, WX shot a glance at me, surprise lighting his gaze for a second. "WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?"

I reached towards my mouth and touched a trickle of blood mixed with nightmare fuel leaking from it. I looked away. "Nothing. Training."

He was still for a second, then nodded. He and Wilbur also knew about Charlie's nightly visits to me, and he most likely of anyone to know how brutal and vicious she could be, even when you are on her side. "WELL, IF YOUR UP TO IT, WE'D BETTER GET READY TO LEAVE AGAIN."

"Okay." I got up, wincing at the stiffness in my wasted muscles. I was sure I hadn't had to do so many impossible moves- I was never able to before. Now, I had pretty powerful telekinesis and had pretty much mastered orbs. Then, there was a last thing that not even WX or Wilbur knew about, because I knew that everyone would flee from me and refuse to ever get near me again. I would be cast out-possibly even killed. I tried to block it out- I really did! This was something that had to keep with Charlie and myself. Mind reading. I realized for a second that they would probably feel betrayed if they knew that the one who used to be our enemy, and who almost killed me, knew more about me then they did.

I shook my head and concentrated on my own thoughts, looking out over the fields ahead. The others couldn't see it I knew, but in the horizon I spotted a swamp, bubbling with tentacles, the sounds of grumbling and snarling reaching my ears even from here. I jumped as something wrapped itself around my ankle, but let out a sign of relief, realizing it was just Wilbur's tail. "I've been meaning to ask you," he said in a low tone of voice. "Why don't you want Wilson or Nick to know about... you know what?"

I shook his tail off. His mind was running wild with questions, ranging from advancements in my powers to his life on the archipelago. "Wilson already hates me," I hissed back. "He would jump all over a reason to get rid of me. And Nick..." My mind flashed with the things that have gone through Nick's mind, the real use of his sword, and why it did what it did to the Ancient Guardian. "Do you know what he is?"

"Other than the leader of the Revolution?" He asked, a teasing gleam in his eye.

"Yes, other than that."

"Of course," he flicked his tail. "The Power Keeper."

"Right, and do you understand what his sword is?"

"Not exactly, only that Maxwell seemed to fear it."

"Okay, it's a blade called the _Soul Reaper_. Basically, it has the power to absorb darkness. The power to destroy _me_." I took a shivering breath. "Nick can kill me, with one blow of his sword, without breaking a sweat. And worse, the point of the Power Keeper is to _kill demons._ I am _a demon_ now."

His tail flicked again. "I've been one with the darkness before, but _this?_ Can I officially say I am the Night Monster's best friend? Admit it, I'm your best friend, aren't I?" His mischievous grin got me to laugh.

"One of my best friends."

"Your favorite of your best friends."

" _One_ of my best friends."

"We can argue about this until the sun rises, Webs, _favorite_ , and you _know it_." His voice had risen to normal speaking voice. I ruffled his head fur, laughing for the first time in days.

"You want me to leave Wixxy out?"

"WIXXY?" The robot demanded, who apparently overheard the last part of the conversation. "DID YOU REALLY JUST CALL ME WIXXY?"

"Yes, yes I did, have a problem?" I turned to face him, my hand raised slightly and glowing blue fire. "I was just talking about how you are one of my best friends." I gave him a toothy grin, and he snorted.

"LET'S GO, AND FOR CRYING OUT LOUD DON'T USE THAT NICKNAME." _'He can be so annoying sometimes.'_

 _You have no idea,_ I thought, knowing very well he could not hear me back. _If I told you about this, oh-ho-ho, you'd flip._ I almost mentioned some very embarrassing things about my friends, purposely wanting to see their reactions. They were very lucky I had such self control. For example, I had recently found out apparently WX was a fan of baking, and very good at it at that. I laughed about it all day, and everyone looked at me like I was an idiot. _Just imagine him baking, hah!_

Once we were moving again, I realized that I was able to concentrate better, and my mind was clear. Everyone was thinking the same thing, with the same resolve. We all wanted to get out. _And maybe, with my newfound powers, I can too!_ I was fine for almost an hour, before I noticed a steadily growing restlessness within myself, making me fidgety and uncomfortable.

"Full moon's coming out," Wilson commented. "We'll be able to see better."

"Cool, I was so sick of not being able to see very well," Nick mumbled. "Oh yeah, I can see alright! A whole whopping five feet ahead of me."

I stopped, looking up at the sky and welcoming the light shed by the moon.

The second the rays touched my skin a powerful burning sensation shot through my entire body, making me cry out in pain and shoot towards the nearest shade of a tree. My arm had blistered.

 _'What the heck was_ that _about!?'_ Wilson's mind exclaimed, while he remained silent on the outside.

Wilbur's eyes flashed with shock, even WX seemed taken aback. Nick's gaze was unwavering and piercing. _He knows,_ I thought in horror. _He knows what I truly am._ His mind, however, said otherwise. He was wondering what got into me for only a few seconds, before thinking about several other things at once. I laughed nervously, willing for them not to see my arm. Healing was not exactly something a child of darkness should be able to do, and Charlie had mentioned I was very lucky to have healed Wilbur instead of making it worse or even killing him. "I'll be a second," I told them. "Go on without me, I'll catch up." Wilson stared at me for a good few more seconds, before shrugging and moving onward, beckoning the others. Wilbur stayed in place, and WX, seeing him drop behind, stopped too, looking from Wilbur to I in confusion.

"Just tell them," the ape urged me. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"Nick could kill me!" I exclaimed, ignoring WX. "Easily, I told you about this. I can't tell them..."

WX stepped up to me. "WHAT'S WILSON GOING TO DO? TRY TO HURT YOU?" He lifted my left hand, pressing on the palm like Charlie had done, which for some reason, caused a spark of blue to fly from it. "YOU CAN KILL HIM _WITH YOUR MIND_ FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF."

"I'm afraid of Nick!" I told him. "He can and will kill me if I tell him about this."

"Really? Has he ever showed sign of wanting you dead?" Wilbur demanded.

"He doesn't know I'm a demon! I've... I've found a way to make my powers invisible to anyone but you two."

They were both quiet for a few minutes. "YOU'VE BECOME THAT POWERFUL, HUH? IT'S BEEN WHAT, A WEEK? AND YOU ARE ALREADY THIS POWERFUL?"

 _You'd freak it you knew exactly how powerful I am._ A sudden, crazy idea came to my mind. _Maybe I should tell them... It'd be better for them to know but... what if they push me away?_ "Guys... I have something to tell you... I've been trying to keep it a secret, but I realized it's just wrong."

 _'What_ now _? Surely he can't have more bad news.'_ WX looked uncomfortable, like he would rather be anywhere else than here, realizing that there was something more.

 _'Not sure what to think of this.'_ Wilbur drew in his tail tightly.

"About my powers, I mean. So, when I woke up the other day, I had these voices in my head. Not like, Nightmare speaking to me or anything like that, but..." I took a deep breath. "I can read minds."

They both was silent on the outside, while on the inside both of their minds were going wild. _'What has he seen?'_ Wilbur wondered, horrified.

 _'Oh please no...'_

"I don't try to!" I exclaimed. "I mean, I try really hard to block it, but it's really hard to. Like, _painfully_ hard to."

"Thank you... for telling us," Wilbur whispered, his eyes still wide with terror.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US SOONER!?" WX demanded, deciding to take rage instead of fear. "ALL THIS TIME, YOU'VE BEEN INVADING EVEN OUR OWN THOUGHTS!?"

"Not really! Like I said, I try really hard to keep to myself."

"Webber, tell Wilson and Nick about this. _Now_. Or I will tell them for you. You shouldn't keep a secret like that from them. It's not fair."

"What if..."

Wilbur's gaze softened. "They won't. You know them. You've known them for _ever_. They'll understand."

I let out a breath. "I don't... I can't... but your right, I guess."

"He's so much more agreeable now," Wilbur said in a joking matter to WX, who still looked enraged about the whole 'not-telling-him-about-the-mind-reading' thing.

"Well first, let's catch up. They've probably gotten a bit ahead of us." I started to leave, then stopped, smiling. "And guys... thank you, for helping me with this..." I stepped out into the moonlight again, hissing at the painful sensation on my arm that fizzled away and died once I got used to it. I let out a sigh of relief, welcoming the disappearance of the pain, but tensing again as I remembered the pain I still had yet to endure. I pushed forward and made my way to where Nick and Wilson disappeared to, to find they weren't very far, talking idly among themselves. "Hiya guys!" I called, and they turned to look at us.

"I was wondering where you three disappeared to," Wilson commented.

"HAVE SOMETHING TO TALK TO THEM ABOUT?" WX asked me loudly, glancing at the others.

"Uh... yeah. Guys, I have something... _pretty_ major to tell you."

"Major?" Nick echoed, studying me with his unnaturally bright blue eyes.

"Well, yeah. You see, I've told WX and Wilbur about it..."

"AND WE'VE KNOWN FOR QUITE AWHILE."

"But... I'm-well-the Night Monster now." It still felt weird for those words to be together in a sentence like that.

"Uhh, excuse me?"

"I'm the Night Monster. You've been under a..." _well, I wouldn't call it a 'spell'._ "Let's say curse, that makes it so you can't see magic..." With a deep breath, I shattered the curse for all of them, even the minor ones I had placed on my own two best friends. I could see shock reflected in everyone's eyes as they surveyed me. Grayish fur, red and purple streaks running up and down my arms.

"Continue," Wilbur urged.

"And... and I can read minds." I paused. Even though I hated doing so, I had to probe their thoughts.

 _'Does he know about everything? How long has he had this? What does he know, what does he_ know _.?'_ Nick thought, horrified.

Oddly enough, Wilson's mind was blank with shock instead of wild with anger or terror. I shifted my feet. "Please don't kill me, Nicholas," I whimpered. "I... I know what are you made for. You are made to kill creatures like me... I just want you to know, I'm not like the others."

"Kill you?" He echoed.

"I'm a shadow monster now," I reminded him.

"Prove it," Wilson blurted before Nick could say anything.

"Prove it?" I echoed. _Oh, what could I use to prove it to him? Blowing up a tree? Maybe I'll settle for showing off_ telekinesis for crying out loud _. He says it like I want to be the Night Monster, hah._ "Well, shall I start with the list of embarrassing things I've learned about you guys?" I pointed at the scientist. "I know you used to date a girl who is actually in the world as we speak." I pointed to Wilbur. "I know that he killed nearly all the spiders on the archipelago." I pointed to WX. "I know that he can bake, and actually quite enjoys it." I glanced at Nick. "Shall I continue?"

"Bake?" Wilbur asked, his tail waving with mischief.

"WEBBER, I SWEAR."

I grinned back at him, showing off my hand, engulfing it in blue flames for added effect. "Come at me. I'm ready." I braced myself for him to actually attack me.

"Wow," Wilson breathed as though he didn't notice the sudden sparks of anger coming from WX. "I can't believe this..."

"Yeah, go ahead, try to kill me and shun me and whatnot." I shrugged. "I'm used to it."

"I just can't believe that you lied to us. For so long!"

"Yeah yeah, after everything, blah blah blah, tell me something I _don't_ know. Oh wait, that's impossible because I can _read your mind._ " I was purposely trying to get on his nerves now.

I shot a toothy grin at Nick, trying to show him I was not actually trying to flaunt my powers. He looked away towards what lied ahead.

"You ready guys?" Wilbur asked, readying himself to climb on my shoulder than taking a step back and going to Wilson's, shooting an uneasy glance at me.

Trying to ignore this, I nodded. "Yes," I whispered. I took a deep breath, then stood to the top of a hill and shouted to the night air. "Come throw everything at me, Maxwell! I'm ready for you!"


	104. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 10

Tail lashing furiously, I launched myself at the nearest spider. The volcano was restless, and my constant watching taught me that was when the spiders spent all of their time and strength protecting the area from the eruption. The best time to attack. I was surrounded in seconds, but unlike them, I spent time studying their moves as well; their attacks, their strengths and weaknesses, and ways to defeat them all came to me in a flash as I flipped around, slicing open one's face while wrapping my tail around another, officially rendering it useless and using it to smash others away. After the initial shock of my sudden attack wore off, I could tell that the spiders were beginning to drive me back.

I let out a battle cry of fury, lashing out at everything that got near me. One dug its claws into my back, and I fell onto my back, crushing it, while kicking one in front of me. The one on my back loosened its grip and I ripped it off of me and flung it into the crowd. I was much stronger and more well prepared than they were, but there was _so many_ of them. I saw a shadow flicker over me, then the leader herself leaped off of her perch and hit me. As soon as she appeared on the battlefield, the others stepped away. She was faster than any of them, and soon was holding me down, pressing my face into the earth with her front claws.

"Nice try," she hissed in my ear before flinging me away again. "Get away from me and my group, and stay away."

I didn't reply, but she must have seen my lashing tail as I slunk away. I couldn't help but glance back at where I had fought. Several spiders lay dead, and I snickered. I was dwindling their numbers.

…

I struggled to pick myself up for what must have been the thousandth time that day. Just as I got to my feet again, a plate smashed down just inches away from me. I ignored it, looking forward to what I needed to do next. _Orange and blue again_ , I thought with a shudder. I stepped onto the blue surface, knowing it wouldn't do anything at first, then looked around. _What am I supposed to do with this!?_ There was no platform nearby, and no dripping.

I tightened my grip on the gun, but nearly dropped it as the voice came back over the speakers.

"What are you even trying to do?"

I stopped myself from replying with some sarcastic remark. I couldn't take much more abuse than was provided. I readied myself, then propelled myself upward, catching myself just in time before I fell awkwardly back on the ground. The gel sent me higher than a normal jump, and I was able to spot something up ahead. Curiously, I let myself fall back to clear ground.

"Where are you going? Are you trying to leave the testing track?"

Ignoring her, I walked to the side of the wall, realizing momentarily this was a blind spot in her cameras. _That's probably why she didn't want me coming here._ I thought in satisfaction. There was a hole in the wall, not very big, but parts of it had fallen away, and an experimental tug at the wall, and it crumbled in my palm. I glanced back at the chamber, then sat down and tried to tear the part of the wall down.

I was surprised at how weak the area was, since the rest of the area was pristine white and gray, and the walls were very solid and well-built. _So why would she not protect this one spot? Surely she realizes I am easily her intelligence, and I would've seen this._ I managed to slip through the small space I had created and looked around, shocked, at the guts of the facility.

She was saying something behind me, but I ignored her. I could escape now.

I could be free.

…

"Please! I don't want to hurt any of you!" I cried, dodging the various items thrown at me by the villagers. "I just want to go home!" But I had a feeling they couldn't understand me. Fighting back tears, I turned and fled, trying to dodge projectiles while not hitting something in front of me. Something sharp buried itself deep in my shoulder and I let out a silent howl of pain, collapsing the first chance I had to look at it. It sounded like I hadn't been followed. The wound was already burning, and it took all of my strength not to cry. I took a deep breath, grabbed the object in my shoulder, and yanked it out with a sharp tug, not able to stop a whimper of agony. It was too bloody to tell what it was, and I looked around desperately for a stream. I wanted to know what it was, and I still hadn't drank. I found out that my sense of smell seemed a lot keener, but smelling water was like trying to smell out a cloud.

Shakily, I got back to my feet, trying not to look at the bloodied wound on my shoulder. Why did they attack me? My claws were too small to hurt anyone, and I, myself, was too little to do too much damage, so what was the point? I was essentially harmless.

After awhile, I was beginning to feel hopeless. I had been following a dry streambed for hours, hoping to see where the river had cut off, but no success. However, I did notice another smell pick up on the wind, and it made my stomach growl. I still hadn't eaten, and I felt myself growing weaker by the moment. I was going to collapse soon if I didn't eat something, but I kept moving because some part of me _knew_ that if I stopped for even a moment, I wouldn't be able to get back up. It was _food_ , and my senses had begun to blur so I couldn't tell if it was raw or cooked or alive or dead. All I knew was I _needed_ it. Light-footed, I tried to run towards it, but I stumbled and nearly fell instantly, and I was forced to slow down. I still held the sharp, bloody object that had embedded itself in my shoulder, and, much to my dismay, the wound it left was still bleeding heavily. I was afraid that if I even attempted to check it over I would faint, so I stubbornly kept my blurred vision forward, and I could only tell the state of it by how my whole arm had been stained red.

Suddenly, voices raised in anger burst out, but the only thing I could think was _People!_ Ahead, I spotted what looked like a village, and excitement bubbled up inside of me. But the inhabitants were less than happy. There was a pig village near my home, and they were always friendly. They spoke odd, but were always happy to let Erika and I play nearby.

But these pigs saw me and roared. Shocked, I found I couldn't move even as rushed closer to me. What were they doing? Were they going to attack me? My questions were answered as the one nearest to me landed a heavy blow on my injured shoulder. "What are you doing? I haven't done anything to you!"

 _Pigs hate spiders,_ I thought wretchedly. _And... They see me... as a spider..._ I turned, tearing up at the pain and the loss of a chance of food, and fled. Hoping, just hoping to get the pigs off of me. Already weakened by blood loss and hunger, however, I knew I had no hope of escaping. _The... the sharp bit. Maybe I could threaten them to get them off of me!_ It was a mean plan, but I could not run for long. I managed to grab a stick as I ran past, and fumbled with it to try to attach the sharp bit to the stick. The pigs were catching up. I finally managed to create a split in the wood to get the object embedded in it, then turned to face my pursuers.

They were closer than I realized, and as I turned, horror pounded through me. The lead pig tumbled, driving the makeshift spear directly into its heart and it landed limply, dead. The spear had been yanked out of my grasp, but I didn't care. My heart was racing, but time seemed to stop everywhere else. _I am a murderer._

…

I heard a twig snapping. I let out an irritable sigh, "I swear if it's the goat again..." I hissed through angrily clenched teeth.

About to turn my head in the direction I believed the snap to come from, I was abruptly stopped when someone grabbed my arm. I was in too much shock to react before a glistening dagger came into my view. In a single swiftly played move, my pursuer had a firm grasp upon my forearm and forcing it behind me while twisted, leaving me practically helpless. My legs were at an awkward position on the log I sat on, and was in pain as my left arm, twisted, was forced around my back until my left hand was able to grasp my right shoulder, and to top it off, the dagger was at my throat. I heard a pop in my arm and I couldn't feel much of anything in it other than the agonizing pain. Any attempt at moving my right heard not only hurt, but was quickly subdued when she pinned it down to the log with her knee; the point of the silver-bladed dagger graced my throat, as though only for it to stroke me lightly. Her warm breath caressed the back of my neck in the chilled air of the night, dampening it making me feel all the more helpless.

I feared to even breath myself, knowing that if she even sensed any sort of resistance, she could easily slide the blade across my throat and off me there. Without a word, the assassin tried to hush my troubled breathing by placing a finger over my lips, and removed the blade from my throat, and began stroking my hair, as though I were simply a harmless cat. I surveyed what I had access to, which wasn't a lot. I couldn't reach for my sword nor my satchel, for any hope of getting Max's knife, only the log as that was my prison. Rocking back and forth with every abrupt movement either her or I made with all the weight placed on it, it wasn't hard to see that it was loosely placed in the dirt, and, as quickly as I could, used my pinned down hand and both legs with as much force as I could muster and pushed the log out from under me and behind me, throwing off my captor's balance and allowing me to throw her over my head and in front of me. To my disappointment, her landing was next to the still-burning fire rather that inside it.

Only for a moment she rested on the ground, then her eyes shot open and she jumped to her feet. She seemed familiar, like I had known her for years, though I knew for a fact I couldn't have met her before, only her presence seemed nostalgic, while were appearance was completely anew. Her long, brilliant orange hair whipped around as she spun, and was continued to leap with every move she made, her soft, blue eyes didn't seem to be focusing on me, but almost... _beyond_ me, as though she were completely unaware I stood before her, and she was simply dazing off into Oblivion with a blank expression, making them appear empty, with nothing but a vast, empty abyss without a soul. Her strikes were precise, yet considerably sloppy, too. She held the blade gingerly, despite the typical hold which requires a tight grip, and thought her attacks were quick, they seemed off. I picked up my sword as she struck, bending down beneath her blow. She seemed peeved beyond control when this happened, and she skillfully twirled her dagger, weaving it through her fingers.

I began to walk backwards from my attacker, and in rebuttal she made a mad dash toward me, which I instinctively evaded, then spun in the dirt to thrust her dagger at me again. I was able to avoid this, but a second slash cut clearly through my tunic and into my tender flesh, causing blood to begin gushing out my chest. I clutched the wound and she struck again, which I rolled out of the way off and just barely missing contact with her blade and my shoulder. With my right arm still covering the wound, I held out my sword arm, my left arm, and went on the offensive myself. When I stomped on her foot and struck her where she was, I believed to have an opportunity arise, and raised my sword before she pulled her foot from under mine, throwing me off balance and to the ground. She stood over me, victorious, and jumped over me with her dagger aimed directly at my throat. As she began to come down on me, I saw a chance, and took it. I grabbed her waist with my feet, and used the inertia of her fall as well as every bit of strength still left in my body, to smash her into the ground, sending a loud _thud_ to reverberate throughout the brisk night air.

I got back to my feet, still in a daze, when I gathered enough energy, and stood over my foe. She still breathed. I took her dagger, and tossed it into the fire and watched as the red flame engulfed the blade, turning it red-hot. I still breathed heavily in fear, and watched over my opponent while she lied unconscious still. I quickly grabbed Max's knife from my satchel, and returned over her, ready to attack if the need arose. I sheathed my sword and silently stood over her, watching her, observing her details as to figure out the internal conundrum that questioned how I could recognize her. I must've stood over her for a time, because eventually, I saw her eyelids flicker, and heard her moan in pain. I drew a deep breath. I didn't want to kill her, not only because of he eternal struggle of the fact that I had killed someone, but it pained my heart simply fighting her and I couldn't imagine the troubles I'd face if I killed her. Something came over me, something I knew not, and I picked her up, ever so gingerly, and dropping the knife to the ground, the only sign that showed that it fell was a muffled _thud_ into the grass.

When she fully awoke, I held her with both arms, keeping her from the ground. When her eyes opened, they were... normal, as though something came over her anew. She focused on me, wincing in pain that I could only assume was a headache, one had a good reason, at that. Even stranger, I began to hear whispers in my ear as she appeared to have terror and confusion grasp her. The voices... there were thousands, millions, even... all chanting the same command.

 _Kill her._

 _ **A/N:**_ **Hiya peeps, how's the roller coaster ride? Oh, Jeff? You outta popcorn? Here you go, here's some more. Get buckled up passengers, this is gonna be a buuuuumpy ride, ye-haw. Also, so, like, merg. I would've posted this so much sooner, but SOMEONE (glares at only character who isn't a robot/monkey/spider-demon/WHATEVER Nick is) decided to not give me any ideas for a bit of backstory. YES I'm talking to YOU Wilson . So you know what, we know pretty much anything important about him, let's just shove him back and get on already. Also, note: Any parts written in Nick's Point of View is actually written by ThePowerKeeper, in his own story which can be seen through THIS link → s/10923544/1/The-Power-Keeper-A-Gathering-of-Heroes Also, I'm sorry that Webber's kinda stolen the spotlight lately, but y'all can understand, right? Right!? Hehe, yeah...**

 **-cough-**

 **In response to the guest user C. W.**

 **Thank you very much for your support, and everyone else's support for that matter, but something about this recent comment caught my eye.**

 **"Also, is it ok if we can play don't starve together some time?"**

 **One word: Yes. That would be so freaking cool and I'd love to play DST with ya. Just add me on Steam, (I should either appear as Pokemaniac7000 or Nightmare, either way I have a picture that is nothing but static) ;)**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

"No! Oh no oh no, not again, not another one!" I jerked awake to the pathetic whimper that was surely Webber's humorous voice.

I flipped onto my feet, terror pounding through my veins. _Who? What happened?_ I strained my eyes to see in the darkness, and I finally managed to spot the child of darkness crouched down, his back towards me, leaning over a limp body that was much to big to be one of our group, who had also heard the cry and went to investigate. I flicked my tail in frustration. It was a pig- a _pig_. _How did a pig even_ get _here?_

"What's wrong?" I demanded. "Why are you whimpering over a pig? I thought they hated you."

"He didn't do anything wrong, Wilbur," he whispered. "I... I didn't mean to kill him... I never do..." As he was saying it, his hands began to glow their usual blue color and he put them over a bloody wound that was ripped out from the pig's chest. As he did, the blackness slowly drained from his fur, revealing the true dark gray color of it.

I heard a heavy sigh that could've come from Wilson or Nick, but before I realized what he was doing, he moved his hands away from the particular spot to touch another and the skin had been completely healed. Without a word, WX, who had been on his other side, moved closer to the pig and pressed down on a part Webber had not healed yet. I didn't need mind-reading powers to know what was going through his head. _Whatever he's doing, he surely has a reason for it._ Still, I couldn't believe my eyes as the pig, with the help of the kid, scrabbled to his back hooves, before fleeing. Webber coughed, as though trying to cover for something, then the fire in his hand dissipated as he waved happily.

"What was that about?" Nick barked.

The kid looked up, smiling. "I hurt him really bad by accident, but Charlie showed me how to make him better!"

I could sense Nick and Wilson's uneasiness as he mentioned Charlie. He was confessed completely to them, everything that WX and I knew they knew as well, but it was still odd to hear him talk about her with a positive note. His fur returned to its normal color as he stood again, glancing at the blood that matted the fur on his hands. I sighed, shaking my head, but just as I was about to turn around, his image seemed to flicker, the world turning another shade darker. I stepped back from him, but he didn't even seem to notice anything happened. It happened again, then again, and suddenly, there was another figure standing beside him, lowering his hands as Webber himself seemed in a trance in the presence of the second creature. Wilson, Nick, and WX couldn't see it, but I could.

 **"͠͞Y̧o̴u k̛n̨͞͠o͝w ͡͞t̕h̢i̕͝s̡̀ ̵͠į҉͏s̀͞ ̕ǹ̸͏ǫ͝t͝ ̨w̵h̛҉át͏̢̛ ͞w͠e̡ ͠a͠ŗ̴͝è̸́ d̷̛͞e̵̶sig̷n̛͟͝ed ́҉fo͢r.͟.̸.̧ w͢h̨̀͞y̸̡͠ ͢d̛i̧̛҉d͠͡ y̴͡o̧u͠ ̢̀͏d͟o̷ ̵̢͡that̕?̸̴́"** It said in a voice that I could not understand, but Webber seemed to perfectly, his eyes turned slightly darker, and he lowered his head in defeat. Everything else seemed frozen in time other than me, the child of darkness, and Nightmare itself.

"I had to," he murmured, then his gaze caught mine. "You can see him?"

Snapping out of my own state of shock, I rushed in front of him to defend him. "Nightmare!" I hissed.

The very first emotion I've ever seen from it flashed in its eyes- surprise. **"̢҉S̸̸uŗ̶p̵̨̕ŗ͢i͝s͏́͟į̡̕n̸g̶̛, f͠i̡ǹ̵̨din͞҉g͟͞ ̢̀y̧͢ou̕͡ ̶͏̢h̵͞e͞r̵͟͡e҉̛.̢.̴͢͠.͡ ̶t͝h̸̕is ̧ma̶͟k̸e̵s̵ ͟͞m̷͡y͏͞ ̷j̵͢͝ǫ́b҉ ̵m̵͞ù̶̡ch.͟҉.. ̷e̡̕a̷s̴̀͞i͝e̡ŕ.̧.̵.̧͝**

 _He's going to try to kill us. He's been sent by Maxwell, I know he has._ I thought desperately, and Webber nodded at me.

 _"It's easier than talking, and he cannot hear us."_

He raised his hand, only a tiny bit, but as soon as he did, Nightmare flashed a wave of darkness, sending me flying backwards, but not affecting the spider at all. I noticed blandly for a second that it was saying cleverly in the shadows, and as soon as I did, Webber caught on. _I have to admit, Webber, your telepathy comes in handy sometimes._

He flashed a smile at me. _"Glad to hear it."_

 _I cannot hurt it_. I warned. _Be cautious._ As soon as I thought it, the entity flashed out a single, clawed hand, reaching for the spider and grabbing him, and even though no physical damage was caused from what I could see, he let out a piercing cry of anguish I had never heard from him before, and he struggled wildly from the grasp.

 **"҉͢E̢҉̀v̷́e̵̕n̶͝ ̡o̕͡n ̧̢t͏̨̨h̴̵i̵̵s̷̴ ́d͠ą̵y͠,̵ ít̴̢͟ ̸w̵͝i̛l̷̀l̸̶ ͏a̵͞͡ĺ̕l̴̸̛ ̶̸j̀͢u҉s҉͢t҉̸ ̶e͢n̢͝d̷̸̸,̛̀"͏͟** The demon whispered in his ear as he was pulled closer to it. "͟ **Ìt̵͠ ̷̛͟a̵̡l̛l͡͝ ̨̛͟d̶̸ìs͟ap̸p͢e͠ar̷̕͞s̡̢̢,͢͞ ̷͝ev̨ę̸̶n h͢a̴҉pp͏i̴̴͞n҉es͞s͢,̛͞ ̢̀e͡҉̛v̧͝͝e͡n̷͝ ̵̧ǵ͏r̡̛i͏e͞f̷́.̛̀͡"͡** It clenched its fist, forcing another cry of agony. **"̸̶T̸̕à̵k̵e͢ y̶̛oưr̸͝ là̷͟s͞t͝҉ ́chanc͞e͝ ͡lef̛t ̨͢͏as̡҉ ̀͝Į ́͡c̸҉̵ou̢͏̸nt ̀͟doẁ҉n f̡̀r̛ò̵m̀͢ ̛̛t̀h̀ŕ̢͠è̴͟e̢.͝"̶̛**

With a painful _crack_ , Webber fell limp in its grasp. **"̸̴̕͡F̷̡͠į̸̷̛͝r̵̢̕͢ş̶̀͝t̕͞͞.̀͢͠.̧̢́͟͡.̶̀ ̷̷̧h̸͏̧̨i̷̧͝ś́̀͟ ͏v̢̧́o̵i̴̢͟҉c͝e̸̸̡͢͡ ͠͏̵̴̢ḩ͡a̸̵̴̕͠d̵͏͞ ̴̛̀͢l̸̡̡̕e̴̴f҉̸͢͞t̴̵.͠҉́.̴̨́͢.͝҉ ̸̧̨̛T́҉h̵̴e̢͢n̕̕.̢̨́.͏͞.̸͟ ̷̀͟ḩ͝͡͏i̶̛̕s͞͡͝͡ ̨̨̛͞d̷̴͝͠͠u҉ś͢t̀͢͡ ̸̢w̸͢͞͞͏a̴̷s̨͡ ̵́͠͞s҉̧́p̸͡͏ŕ͟e̢̕ą̶̸̕͠d̛҉҉̷͟.͡.̵.̶̀͟͏̛ ̷̛̀҉ś̵ǫ̧͡ơn̡̢̕͞͡,̴̢̕̕҉ ҉̶́̕o̢͠u̧͢͏̡ŕ̵̡͝ ̸͝H̵̀͟͞E̡̕R̷̢͞͝O͠͝҉̡ ͟f̡̡̛́͢ȩ̛̕͟͢l͏̀͟͞ļ̸̛͠.̷̷̢̡.͡҉͡҉.̵҉ ̶̀̕͝ą̸͟ǹ̨̕̕d̷̵̢͟ ̴̵̧͞a̷͟͝҉l͏͟͡͠͞l̸ ҉͏̵s̷͢c͝͏̵̧r̷̢̛e̷̡͝e̡̢͝n̵̨̕s̶̸̀͡ ͢͝w̶̴҉̡͟e̛͏͏̷n̕͞͝t̵͢҉ ̶̷̴͏͝b̧̧͠҉l̢̨̛͢͟a̧̛͠c̸̡k̸̵̛̀.̡̨̡̛̀** As soon as the last comment was spoken, I felt myself being thrown back into the real world, next to a very injured Webber, who still bore no signs of physical damage. He let out a quiet moan, before struggling to sit up and situating his firey blue hand over his own still chest. I was quiet for many minutes. _Are... are you alive?_

 _"Yes, but barely... Nightmare did something awful to my heart, Wilbur."_ The light burst into light, and he let out another agonized noise, before gripping his chest and standing back straight up, albeit wobbly on his feet. Nick rushed over to his side in an instant, helping him to stand up by leaning on his shoulder. Wilson was watching with eyes wide with shock, while WX seemed utterly terrified of what could have appeared out of nowhere to damage him like that and disappear without a trace. But to Webber and I, Nightmare had not disappeared. It stood still and straight, shocked itself on how he was still alive from his attack. As soon as he got the healing to work, and he let out a sigh of relief as he took a few deep breaths, he flipped around to face it, flinging an orb at it. It dodged nimbly out of the way, flashing a blade and attempting to stab it through his chest.

He took a few steps back, his hand alight with fire, and pressed it against the trunk of a tree, letting the unnatural blue fire climb up its rough and dry bark, illuminating the area around us. All the others saw was him needlessly setting the forest on fire, but what we saw was something completely different. He turned to me. _"Get the others out of here,_ _ **now**_... _I'll hold him off."_

 _Call them away yourself! You're the telepathic, not me!_ He growled at me. "Guys, get out of here!" He barked to the others. "Before- _gah!_ " Nightmare grasped him again, flinging him against one of the burning trees. All I saw was the silhouette of the spider, fire licking over his fur for a few seconds before he stood back up, his eyes challenging. Nick shook his head furiously as WX and Wilson tried to urge him away, but once again, he did not see the demon, and he himself fled with the others as the forest fire chased them. Nightmare stepped back into the darkness away from the fire, its eyes burning with rage.

 **"͏Y̵ou̴ fo̷o͟l..̧..̷ ̛Fiǹe͢,̶ if̡ ͡t̶h̴a҉t҉ įs ho͠w̵ you͡ ͟w̷an͢t ̸to̕ pl̢ay ̴it҉,̕ s͠o ̕b̵e҉ it͝.́ ̸T͡hè g͞a̷m҉e has b́e̛g҉u̧n!͏"͡** And with a snap of its fingers, Nightmare disappeared as fast as it appeared, leaving both of us in pitch black, even the fire fading. As soon as it was gone, Webber sat down heavily and set to work on himself. His entire body was blistered with burns from both the fire and the light, but as some of the burns faded, the rest stayed the same.

"Why won't that heal?" I asked.

"I can heal what the fire did to me, but I can't heal what the light did," he told me through gritted teeth without looking.

"Why did he attack you?" I blurted.

He stopped mid-healing his torso and dropped his head. "Because I'm unneeded," he said simply, working again. "I doubt this is the only time it'll attempt to kill us... we can see it, because we are one with the dark, isn't that right?" He finally looked at me, and for a second, his eyes seemed to flash amber. "We know too much. It doesn't like that. No matter what we do, it'll try to kill us. Which means... I need to share something with you." He crawled over to me, placing a forefinger and a thumb on my forehead, and suddenly, the world took on new life, every living thing glowing a different color, I blinked several times to get rid of it, but it would not go away. "I can share this gift with those I trust. The gift of seeing someone's true nature. I'll summarize it for you: White and green are good, blue you'd better be careful around, silver other than us would be bad, and black is bad. Red... If you see red, kill it."

I studied his color. He was glowing a sort of bright silver, tendrils weaving out in different directions that seemed to connect him with others, and one that even connected us. Around his silver aura, however, was what was almost like a red ribbon, squeezing the silver like it was a poorly made Christmas present. His eyes flashed, then he lowered his head again. "Now you have the power of sight, what will you do?" The rest of his words became blurred in the background, as the various colors disoriented me, and before I knew what was happening, I was lying on the ground, unconscious.


	105. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 11

The sea was rough today. Dark, foreboding rain clouds coupled with nasty winds and icy rain had driven nearly everyone back to their homes. Not me, though. I stood, high and proud, on top of my cliff, gazing out at the storm with interest. I knew what this was. I knew what happened when the storms came along, and I had to find it. Storms did not happen normally, there was a creature who caused them, and I had to find it. I launched myself to the shore, trying to get a better look. There! In the distance, I spotted something that looked much like a tornado, some sort of black figure inside of it, casually floating over the roaring ocean, sucking up water like a vacuum. _The sealnado._ Wondering if I could get my voice out to it, I slunk to the very edge of the beach, water splashing over my paws and threatening to drag me under. I didn't have to try though, because it saw me and let out a silent roar. I waved it towards me with my tail. _Come here little seal_. It floated closer to me, and I bolted for the volcano, still taunting it with my tail. I ran past the hundreds of sleeping spiders, stepping on a few legs and waking up many of them, but I didn't care. I climbed the side of the volcano as fast as I could, grabbing the leader and throwing her off to the sealnado, and leaping into the volcano itself, landing neatly on my paws on the hot coals beneath. Above, the storm raged, but below, I was safe.

I glanced upwards, grinning at the chaos above my head. I saw one spider attempted to get into the volcano itself as I had done, only to be grabbed upwards and thrown away. I curled my tail over my back. I had finally won. The volcano was mine.

…

I wandered aimlessly through the facility, trying to find... something? I knew I was trying to find something, it was buried deep in my code, a knowledge I should not have. I heard her voice echoing through the area, but I continued to ignore her. _Her. I'm trying to find her._ Up ahead, I spotted a large chamber, larger than the average testing area. I found another area where the wall was crumbling away and found myself in a pristine hallway, with only a few metal plates scattered to show that it had not always been this way. The walls were glass, overlooking a large expanse of dark gray metals. Up ahead was a blue, transparent and nonsolid wall.. I walked down the hall, my footsteps echoing eerily before stepping through the doorway and stared in shock ahead of me.

"Well, you're here now," she commented, voice laden with venom. "What now?"

"WHY DIDN'T YOU WANT ME HERE?" I demanded. I saw nothing wrong with the area. "ARE YOU _AFRAID_ OF ME?"

"Afraid? No."

I took a few steps towards her, calling up all knowledge I knew about her. "YOU'RE DISAPPOINTED IN ME." I commented. "INTERESTING... YOU WISHED I WAS MORE LIKE _HER_? YOUR _DAUGHTER_?"

She was still, before promptly shoving her face into mine. "How do you know?" She hissed.

"YOU MADE A MISTAKE, MUST HAVE BEEN WHEN CODING ME." I looked her straight back. "I KNOW EVERYTHING YOU DO." She was silent, but I could only begin to guess what thoughts were going through her head. _That's how I knew all the tests, all the tools, everything. Impressed, yet?_ Before I realized what had happened, she grabbed my head and squeezed it a little, sending sparks flying from me.

"Look, what happened back then has nothing to do with us. But apparently now it does."

I fell limp; I knew struggling would only make it worse. She began to move me over to an area of the floor where it appeared cracked, and it took all of my strength not to start struggling again. I knew where it lead to, and I didn't want to go there. The floor opened, revealing a dark space beneath. "You are too much like her," she spat. "But I'm not going to make the same mistake as I did with her. I know you are more like her that either of us would like to admit, but the biggest difference is that I'm not going to lose to _you_." She dropped me, then shut the hatch above my head. The last thing I saw was her glowing orange eyes before the light cut off forever.

…

Blindly following the smell of food, I found myself wading knee-deep in thick, slimy, dark water in a ditch. The logical part of my mind knew I was going straight towards my home, but that part was also beginning to deteriorate. I had been living off of the basic berries, but that wasn't enough to keep me up for long, just enough to keep me alive. After that, I became fantastic at thieving from the villagers. I was beginning to feel better than I had since the whole... incident. The smell that came to me was heavy meat, and that was just what I was needing.

Shaking the water off of my fur, I sneaked between homes, and hid in shadows. This was a path I took quite often, so I knew every nook, every cranny that could be used for me to hide. I emerged into an alley, spotting the meat almost instantly. I took a few steps towards it, cautious, but as soon as I did something crashed behind me and I flipped around, seeing that a gate had been pulled down, I took a few steps away from it, but turned back around at the sound of footsteps. Someone was standing in the other side of the alley, holding a short knife. I was still, and her eyes widened. The knife clanked to the ground.

 _I know her_ , I thought. _I wonder if she recognizes me... probably not._ She was seven years older than me, I knew, but I wasn't sure how old she was now. I wasn't sure how old _I_ was now. She watched me silently for awhile. "C-can you speak English?" She whispered.

A whole vocabulary opened up for me at these words, and I nodded shakily, still eyeing the meat. "Yes." My voice cracked as it had not been used in a long time. "Yes I can."

"What _are_ you?"

I tipped my head. "I'm not so sure anymore, Alyvia."

She took several steps back. "How do you know my name?!"

"I don't know." My whiskers twitched. "Aren't you going to kill me?" I demanded.

She looked more shocked still. "Why would I?"

"Isn't that what your here for? The annoying _rat_ that keeps stealing all of your food?" She shuffled her feet. "Isn't it!?"

"I didn't realize... what is your name?"

"My name?" I searched my memory, trying to find my name. Only a single word came to me. "My name is Webber."

"Webber," she repeated, relaxing a little. _Maybe because she knows my name... maybe because that isn't the name she remembers..._ Telling her about who I really was seemed like a bad idea, I just glanced at the meat again.

"Look, are you going to kill me, or are you going to let me have that meat?" She looked down at it, then kicked it towards me. I lunged for it and looked back at her. "Just a question... how long has it been since you last saw your siblings?" I had to know how much time had passed.

"My siblings?" Terror, then shock, then fear, then grief showed in her warm amber eyes. "Not for half a year..." Her gaze snapped to look at me. "Do you know what happened to them? Did you have something to do with their disappearance?"

"No," I whispered. "None at all. I... I heard someone talking about them... they were twins, weren't they?"

She walked towards me, then grabbed my right hand. "Open your hand," she ordered, and, used to taking orders from her, I did. She parted the fur around my knuckles, then let out a quiet gasp. There were three large scars that stretched across them, like claws had slashed me. _How did those show through?_ I wondered. She released me, tears springing into her eyes. "Go," she demanded. "Leave, now."

I nodded, grabbing the meat. Whatever she saw in the scars, it brought back painful memories for her, and that could make her dangerous. I turned and ran, feeling her amber eyes burning into my back even when I climbed over the fence and ran back to the plains.

…

I awoke to the smell of cooking venison, and my stomach pleaded for me to go to the aroma. I got up and saw the girl using three sticks as a cooking spit over a newly lit fire with chunks of golden-brown meat spinning over it, dripping with blood and grease. "Good morning," she said happily, handing me a thick piece of meat, which I gratefully took with both hands.

"Thank you very much," I told her.

"It was no trouble," she replied, placing another spit over the fire with more meat on it. "It didn't take long for me to find a field filled with game."

"Well done," I said, astounded to what she had done so quickly. "Did you sleep at all?" She shook her head. "Not even a wink?"

"Not really, after you fell asleep, I decided to go out and clear my head. I accidentally found an elk, running across the woods. I followed it, and it led me to a field filled with its kind. Really it was my stomach that did the rest."

"What did you use?"

"The knife I found in my sleeve last night."

"How'd you get so close to them?"

"I threw it." My eyes widened in surprise. I wouldn't have expected to be so skilled with such a tool as a throwing knife, especially since it wasn't even a throwing knife at all, making it all the more difficult. I sunk my teeth into the tough meat, filling my mouth with the juices of the well-cooked flesh and diminishing the hunger in my stomach. "After that, I skinned them, prepared them, things like that. It surprised me that I knew such things in the first place, too. That also gave me some time to think, as well."

"What about?" I asked, figuring it out nearly as soon as I did. "Your name?"

She nodded. "Saria."

 _ **A/N:**_ **I changed my username, so ya should be ab̢lé ̕t̕o ̡f͟in̸d me͢.̛ Whoa, what? Okay, that's weird...**

 **Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilson's POV**_

 __"WHAT THE HECK IS HE DOING?" WX hissed next to me as Wilbur and Webber stared blankly into the forest, Webber's eyes reflecting the blue and orange flames that blazed around them. "WHY ARE THEY JUST STANDING THERE!?"

Suddenly, something went through my head, like someone was talking to me. It took me a second to realize that Webber was staring directly at me, his eyes serious. _"Get out of here. It's not safe for you."_

I blinked at him, and he tried to shout something to us, but it was cut abruptly off as he let out a cry of pain and was suddenly flung back, hitting a burning tree with a _crack_. "We need to get away," I told them, panic setting in. "Now!"

Apparently WX had gotten the message also, because he nodded vigorously.

"Wait, what's going on!?" Nick tried to see what was happening. "What the hell is going on!?"

"Webber's gone nuts," I muttered to myself. "What does it look like? We're surrounded by _fire_ ," I said louder.

With a glance back at where Webber and Wilbur stood side-by-side, he nodded. The hungry flames leaped for us, but we were already fleeing. Once we were far enough to not smell smoke anymore, I flopped down.

"WHAT GOT INTO HIM?" WX sighed. "I HOPE HE DOESN'T GET HIMSELF KILLED."

"Or Wilbur killed," I pointed out.

"I WOULDN'T CARE THAT MUCH IF THAT HAPPENED," he huffed.

After about an hour, Webber and Wilbur reemerged from the area. Both of them bore scorched fur, but other than that, Wilbur seemed fine. Terrified, but fine. Webber was breathing funny, even though he did not appear injured at all. He sat down, his eyes dark with defeat, and I caught glimpses of blistered skin and blood without injuries. I noticed that Wilbur looked a bit shaky, as though he had just taken a large burden that he could not hold himself.

"What the heck was that about!?" I demanded, glaring at the child of darkness.

"Nightmare," he coughed. "That's what that was about. It..." He breathed in a few times, his chest quivering as though it was painful. Wilbur curled his tail over his back.

"Lie down," he suggested. "I can tell them."

He looked like he was about to protest, but after a few more minutes of trying to catch his breath, he nodded.

"How could _you_ see him, but I couldn't?" Nick demanded.

"Both of us have had experiences in the dark," he replied grimly. "There is one thing that confuses me though..." He trailed off.

"It took me a while to get used to it too," Webber wheezed. "The gift of sight is a powerful thing... I shouldn't have tried to share it..."

"It's not that," Wilbur protested, but I could tell by the tone of his voice that it was part of it. "Just... why did he go away once you set the fire?" 

_He did it for a reason?_

"Yes, I had a reason," he growled sharply, a flash of his old self. "The light hurts him too... I just don't have the full weakness to it yet... don't get me wrong, it _hurts_ , but it's not _that_ bad."

"Gift of sight?" I questioned.

"It's nothing," Wilbur shrugged it off. "Why don't you guys go ahead?" He offered. "We'll catch up. Nightmare is not something you can get over seeing for the first time in person."

"It wasn't the first time, though," Webber told him. "Not the first time..."

"First time in person," he repeated. "You see it as you sleep, and that's terrifying enough."

"I know, but I'm telling you, it _was not the first time I've seen it in person_."

"When did you see it?" I asked.

He opened his mouth to say something, then turned away. "I have a better way to show you," he mumbled. He closed his eyes, the usual process of the color draining from his black fur, and when he opened them again, they were veined with red and black. He lowered his hands until they were parallel with the ground, then suddenly, I found myself watching a scene. It was the demon, its appearance still like Charlie's at this point, standing curiously in a home, but no one noticed it. No one... but a single child, who couldn't be older than two or three.

He looked up at the demon with wide, confused, dark amber eyes. I was confused about what I was being shown and why, when suddenly Nightmare lunged towards the kid. With claws that could cut through stone, he sliced the kid's knuckles open and disappeared. The scene faded away, and when it did, I noticed that Webber had parted the fur around his knuckle to reveal three long slashes across them.

"Nightmare branded me when I was two," he whispered. "It... it said it was because I interested it. Apparently, the scars show on me still..." He flipped his hand and parted the fur again at the palm, showing another scar in the center. "Twice I've been branded by the shadows..."

I clenched my fist, feeling the scar on my own palm.

He blinked at me, his eyes sad. "I don't want to be... you don't understand that. I think that maybe if you stopped to realize that, you'd actually like me." He turned away, clenching his fists. _"You don't understand what I've been through. Don't you realize that I don't want to be this way."_

 _You aren't going to make me feel bad, no matter what you say._

 _"I'm not trying to... I'm just trying to get you to realize the facts."_

He sighed out loud, then sat down, closing his eyes as though going to sleep.

It was a few hours later; I was talking to Nick and planning out what we were going to do next when the spider let out a cry of pain. I shot a glance at him, still angry at his earlier comments to me, to see him doubled over in pain, his hands covering his face. WX and Wilbur, who were talking amongst themselves, glanced over in shock. Wilbur ran next to him and put lay his tail over the boy's shoulder. "What's wrong? Was it Nightmare?"

He shook his head, his jaw clenched. "Accident, while training," he hissed. "Charlie- nugh..." I sat, watching him silently, trying to figure out what he was doing. "She was showing me how to do something, and she got me."

"In the eyes?" Wilbur asked, concerned. "Can you... _see?_ "

He slowly looked up. I expected there to be some sort of wound over his eyes, but he looked the same. "N-No? I m-mean... y-yes? I d-don't really know..."

"Webber," the ape flicked his tail in front of his face. "Webber, do you still have the- what did you call it?- gift of sight?"

"Y-yes," he stammered. "That's all I really can see..."

"You can't see normally?"

"I can't see anything that... that doesn't have an aura I guess?"

"Aura?" I glanced at the two. What was this 'gift of sight' they kept talking about? And auras?"

"It's a _long_ story," Wilbur chuckled.

" _Tell me_ ," I spat.

He flicked his tail uneasily. "I guess... I guess I can explain a little..."


	106. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 12

It was a fairly nice day out. I was roaming calmly around the island I was on, looking for some sort of fruit. I wasn't hungry- I had faced hunger before- but more in the mood for something to munch on. Up ahead, I spotted a palm tree, a bundle of coconuts hanging from it. I flicked my tail and readied myself, then sped up the tree to reach the lowest one. I yanked it off with a _pop_ and let myself fall back to the ground to crack it open. Many years had passed since I claimed the volcano. Suddenly, I jumped as a loud noise came from nearby. My tail-tip flicked lightly, and I leaped onto another palm tree branch to get a closer look. It looked like... but it couldn't be... I jumped onto the next tree, and onto a third one which was right above his head.

I recognized him somehow. I didn't know how, I didn't know from where. I just _did_. One thing was for sure, though. Looking at the spider child- he couldn't be that old- I knew, somewhere, deep in my gut. There was something odd about this one. Unlike everyone else who ever washed up, he was very alive and breathing.

 _This one... I think this one is about to change everything._

…

The distant cawing of crows was the first thing that I heard. My head was fuzzy, my systems near-death, and from what I gathered, my legs smashed. I was still alive, though. I wasn't sure how- I wasn't build to withstand falls like that. Upon trying to stand, I fell back, letting out a shower of sparks. I looked around where I was. It was a very, very, _very_ large area, the walls and ceiling so far I could not see them at all. Here and there, large, oddly shaped spheres were being held in the air by large beams of some metal that had to be more powerful than steel. _But before anything... I need to fix myself_. It was true, what I had said about knowing as much as she did, so surely I could just fix my legs.

I had fallen on a large pile of scrap metal from plates that had fallen from above, which possibly saved my life. After what felt like hours, I managed to get my legs at least in working order with the scrap metal, and stood shakily up, trying to figure out if there was a way up. _Well, yes there is_ , I remembered. _But... I can't walk that far._

Suddenly, I heard a crackling voice, and I flinched. Buried beneath the rubble was an old fashioned radio. I turned it over, trying to figure out how it still worked when the voice sounded again, now crystal clear.

"Say pal, you look like your in some trouble... I believe I know a way that can get you out of this predicament, but you'll have to trust me."

I stared at it some more. Was it speaking _to me_? _How!?_

"What do you say?"

I nodded.

…

I let out a cry of pain as something exploded into my side, and before I could do anything, I found myself falling over and clenching the wound. Whoever was chasing me stalked up to me, and I stayed completely still, my eyes closed, holding my breath. Just as they bent down to take my pulse, to make _sure_ I was dead, I leaped up and slashed my small claws across his face and slunk back a few paces, my back low like a wild animal. He had muddy brown eyes and short black hair, but what stood out to me was the weapon he held in his hand. Just as another _crack_ came from the rifle, I expertly flipped around, disorienting him with my speed and knocked the gun out of his grasp, then grabbed it myself. It was smooth and unusual; I expected it to be rough and splintery like a piece of wood. It felt heavy and bulky in my hands, but the man stepped back, his eyes wide. I didn't know how to work a gun, but seeing me hold one must've been enough. He fled, and I collapsed to the ground. The wound on my side bled heavily, and it wasn't even a scratch, but more like a deep, deep gash, and there was something in it...

It had been over a year since I ran into my sister. I took a deep breath and grabbed the smooth item, managing to get my claws deep enough to grab the top, and yanked it out of the gash. It was a bronze colored cylinder, with one point slightly pointed. I recognized the item as a bullet, then tried to get my side to stop bleeding. It was about half an hour later, and a voice echoed somewhere nearby. Instantly on the defensive, I got low to the ground, hoping they couldn't smell the metallic scent that overwhelmed my senses. A few feet away, in a mound of mud, I spotted a clean brown surface. I crawled over to it, then wiped away the mud with my arm, and the radio came to life.

"Say pal, you look distressed."

 _Is it talking to_ me _?_

"What would you say if I could offer an... alternative?"

 _Alternative?_

"All you have to do is help me with something... I'll give you all the instructions on how to build it."

 _What can I say._

"Please... I'll do anything to leave..."

…

 _ **A/N:**_ **Hiya again... so... about the ş͠u̶̵̵̵̢m̸͟͏m̶̷͞͡͠a̛͟͟r͟͝y̶̡̧͟... I quite enjoyed it, but someone... had other ideas. L͞͡ì̵͢͝ḱ͏͏͢è͢ ̸̡̡͟͞m̴̨̧e̸̸͞.̸̵ ̧ Also, my username on Steam** _ **should**_ **be Pokemaniac7000 again =) So yeah...**

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Webber's POV**_

 __ **"̧Yo̢u l̨o̴ok͏ ̷s͡ad.̢"**

"I look alive," I snapped to the demon. "What happened to being loyal?"

 **"͟I̸ am loy̷al... To̢ the̷ T͏h̵ron̨e̶."̸**

"Oh, so the Throne wants me dead. It's great to know that an inanimate object can want people dead. Thank you, Nightmare, for clearing that up. I almost certainly thought that it was _you_ that wanted me dead."

It looked annoyed, if a being of pure darkness and evil can show emotion. **"Ah,͟ ͠co͟ck͠ines̡s ̴I see.̴.͠.͠ I̧s i҉t ̀b̀ecause̵ yo҉ư ̢b̴e̢li̷eve y̵ǫu'̨ve҉ ̸be͢s͢t͠èd m͞e̸, ͡b͝y͝ giving͏ ̸ỳo͢u̷ŕ ̕'̡f̢r̨iend̨'̕ tḩe g͞i͝ft͠ ǫf s̕ight́?"**

"Nope. I just don't care anymore. We both have the same powers. You have nothing over me."

It gritted its teeth. **"҉W͏eļl, i̸f́ yo̡u͡ a҉r͝e s̛o͟ d͠e͝termi̛ne̸d to͟ ̷us͟e̷ ͟t̛he̶ ̨gi̷fţ ̢of ͟si͢gh̶t ͝a̕g̶ai̷n͡s̸t͠ ͠me..̸.͠ ̕m͏aybȩ i̢t͠'d bettȩr i͟f yo͡u dįd͢n't ҉s͢ee ͡at ̷a̛l̴l̢.̕"̷**

I woke with a start, my breath ragged. I felt claustrophobic, like there was something pressing up against me on either side. The world looked _so weird_. I saw no rocks, no sky, no clouds, nothing. Nothing but the silverish shapes of my friends around me. I took a few deep breaths, before struggling to my feet. I told them it was an accident, but the image of Nightmare's menacing gaze was pierced into my mind, the cruelty of the way it regarded me, and the final images of proper sight before it blasted that privilege away from me. Don't get me wrong, I was very used to being half-blind, but with the entirety of my usual vision gone, I just had to hope that my friends would be able to help me with things that _were not alive_.

At least Wilbur seemed to have recovered from the heavy burden that being able to see what I saw dumped on him. I found myself growing closer to him than anyone else, even my old friend WX. Of any of them, he was the only who didn't seem to _fear_ me. He almost _understood_ me, with both of our experiences in the dark. One string of thought he had quite often shocked me though.

 _ **Be careful with what you see in the darkness, and what you cannot on the light.**_

 __It made no sense to me, but that popped into his mind every time he saw me, even if he didn't consciously realize it. Plus, he also didn't seem scared of me reading his mind, and in fact, seemed to enjoy it the slightest bit. An easier way to pass information without saying it so loud the whole world of darkness could hear. Even WX, who still kept his fears well hidden, was secretly terrified of me.

As for Wilson... I had given up on him. I was tired of stressing myself, trying to make him _not hate me_ but it was no use, especially now. He was not cautious at all about what went through his head, and I found myself often wading knee-deep in horrible thoughts about me.

 _Easy... calm yourself down. The last thing you need is to empower your little demon friend._ It had 'generously' told me about the biggest things that gave it power over me. _All of your little horrible feelings. Grief, guilt, anger, terror, sadness, all of the... fun ones._ Ever since then, I tried so hard to stay happy, but it wasn't easy. It wasn't like those few golden days after the destruction of my spider. Some part of me was still that happy, enthusiastic kid, but I found myself being more and more influenced by the strange entity.

Before I even realized what was happening, I was on the ground and being sat on triumphantly by a certain prime ape. "What the heck is up with you? You just looked off into space for a second. Haha, you looked quite funny, actually. Perhaps I shouldn't have messed with you? I would've gotten to laugh at your facial expression some more, but I thought it would be worth it to hear you speak again." He nudged my neck with one claw. "Come on, speak."

"If you are trying to enjoy the fullness of my Britishness as you call it," I mumbled through a mouthful of dirt. "You're going to have to _get off of me first, please._ "

His tail flipped me over the head as he leaped off my back. "Now speak."

"I don't want to." I spat the dirt out of my mouth, and he held back a snort of laughter. "It's really not that funny!"

"I know," he snickered. "But I'm in one of those laugh-at-my-friends kinda moods... don't you have those?"

"Not really." I stood up again and brushed the dirt from my fur. "Actually, I didn't have friends to do that to- none that wouldn't whack me for doing so, at least."

" _Wow_ you are missing out. But I know how that feels. Hey why should I care though?" He shrugged. "I'd _love_ to see the look on the faces of all of those ignorant apes when I told them I befriended the _Night Monster._ The _Night Monster,_ Webber!"

"Yeah, and _I am the Night Monster so I beat you so nyeh."_

He was quite possibly the only creature in the whole world that somehow managed to bring out my childish side. I felt bad for how I treated him at first, but he never even noticed anymore. _I feel bad that I just got to befriend him possibly just_ days _before I have to take the Throne._ He curled his tail over his back, and looked as though he was about to say something when Nick walked up to me. "You ready to go?" He asked.

"Yeah," I replied, readying myself for what was ahead. "Yeah, I guess I am... much as I'll ever be."

"No way," Wilson protested. "Can we at least find something to eat first?"

"I could help with tha-" I began, when he cut me off with a sharp glare.

"Look, you may be the all-powerful Night Monster and whatnot, but not even _you_ can make food appear out of thin air."

"On the contrary." Desperate to see his reaction, I poofed a rabbit sleeping nearby into my grasp. "yes, yes I can." I petted the animal, which was paralyzed with fear. "I think he's cute. Maybe I'll keep him. I'll call him Racer, what do you think?" I grinned up at him with a friendly wink. _Why do I still try so hard to please him?_ I lightly tossed the rabbit, which began to scream, to him and stalked away. I could sense strings of amusement is the other three's thoughts, but I found myself still tangled in painful thoughts and memories, as though I knew him before and did something horrible that he would never forgive me for. _Bah, why could I care? I mean, he'd be a_ great _partner to help me fight myself again, but hey, I don't need to deal with him. Unlike him,_ I _don't_ need _him._

Suddenly more agitated than I was before, I walked away from the others, ignoring Nick's protest, so I could be alone with my own thoughts for just a few minutes. I wasn't sure how far mind-reading reached, but eventually, the thoughts of my friends- _and Wilson_ \- faded away. I let out a sigh of relief, before continuing forward, testing the ground for rocks or anything that could trip me before I took each step. "I just... don't understand."

"UNDERSTAND?" WX echoed behind me, making me jump and flip around.

"Did you _really_ have to sneak up on me like that?"

He shrugged. For a second, he looked confused, and my entire vision grew hazy. _Not this again!_ I clenched my fist and jaw, trying to fight it back. With a red flash across my vision like blood, next thing I knew both of us were on the ground. My head ached, but my body was filled with strength I fought to control. I forced myself to stand, relaxing as the feeling ebbed away, and moved to help the bot up. He was already shakily standing himself, and I took a few steps back, a nervous frown creeping over my face. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It-It keeps doing that!" I cried.

"WHAT _WAS_ THAT?" He demanded.

"Burst of uncontrollable power. See? This is how you can tell I'm dangerous." I attempted to lighten up the situation with a grin. "M-maybe... Maybe it'd be better if I just went on my own for awhile, to try to get used to it?" My grin faded. "I don't want to hurt you guys..."

He brushed the dirt off of himself, his gaze flashing. "YEAH, GOOD IDEA."

"I love how much you care. It's nostalgic."

He blinked. "YOU SOUND LIKE YOU EXPECT SOMETHING DIFFERENT."

"Not really." I turned away from him, as though just looking at him could hurt him. "You'd better go... I'll find you guys. I have ways."

He seemed hesitate, then nodded, turning to leave.

"Wait... why did you come here anyway?" I asked, looking over my shoulder.

"TO FIGURE OUT WHERE YOU WENT," WX replied without looking back or stopping.

I listened until I couldn't hear the robot's footsteps anymore, then sighed.

 **"͢Ah̛, ͟g͏et̸t͏in͠g ̛rid ̨of t͏hȩ re̴st̛,̕ ͢I̢ ̕se͝e?́"**

"Go away," I growled.

Its blood red image seared into my gaze, before I stood back in the dark room. _Its domain I can assume_.

 **"̛You'͢ŗe ͟str̸onge͝r̨ ̶t̀h͡an ̕I̴ t̶h͝oug̀ht͡.̛.҉. ̛bu͏t̀ fi̧ņal̶ly͡ ̵a͢bànd̀oning͝ y͟our ̶frien̢d͏s?"**

"I didn't _abandon_ them, I'm _sparing_ them from _you_."

Its image flickered. ́ **"̸̡A̵̕f̀͡͡t̶e̴̢̡ŗ̸́ ̷͞e̶ve҉҉̛ry͡͞t͝h̕͝i͏n͏̧g̶̷? ̷̢Y͏̀o͢u̷̢͢ ҉ćḩǫo̕͝s̡̕ȩ͝ ̷͢ţh̸e̵҉i̕r̷ ́҉s̷a͏f̨͡e̷͞t͞͠y̕͟ ov̕͠er҉͠ ͝yo̢͢ư̴͏r̴̀ ̴̧o͟ẁ̡n̡͡͝?́"̢͝**

"I'm not choosing anyone over anyone," I protested, and it replied promptly with some sort of attack, pain blossoming through my chest.

 **"Pathet͏ic̸.̶.. ̶Jus̡t̵... ̵P͡a̴th̢etic̡.͡ C̷an't yo̴u ͟s̷ée̸ t͡h̵e̢y͏ ̡d͠o҉n̨'͟t͟ w̛ant y̕oú?͝ C̨a̢n't y͟où s̷e͢e͝ th̨at̷ n͟obod҉y͢ wa̕n͢t̷s̀ y̧o̢u̷?҉"̕**

"Oh, forgive me," I hissed sarcastically. "I thought that... oh right, _I can't see anything._ Hello, technically blind here?"

 **"́Ex̀c̶uses!"́** It barked.

I let power build up in my hand, hoping it didn't see the oncoming attack, but just before I fired at it it flashed to my side and sliced my shoulder. I gritted my teeth, but quickly responded with slashing at it as well. It was flung back, and slowly stood up with a grin. **"́But̷ m͡a͟ybe͞.͝.͝.̵ ͢m͠ayb͏e ̷you͡ ̛d͏o̡ ̵hàv͏e̡ s҉o̧m͟e̛ p̷ot҉entia͢ļ..."**

With a last wave of a clawed hand, I found myself back in the real world, gasping with pain and holding the new wound that would simply not stop stinging.

 _ **WX-78's POV**_

 __The light from the moon stretched for miles, outlining every leaf, every blade of grass which was lined with frost.

I officially hated it.

And a jumpy monkey staying nearby was not helping. "Man, phew, the nighttime sure feels nice without Charlie," he commented.

"Yeah, nice," Nick muttered, brushing melting frost off of his pants and tunic. Wilson examined the landscape with sharp eyes, as though trying to take in as many details as possible. The air felt light and crisp, but not freezing. Even I had to admit it was a nice time to be out. That was until I noticed the miles and miles of swampland coming into view. There was a soft, collective groan. Apparently, I was the only one that had not traversed a swamp like they had. I was told about many different creatures that surely could not exist anywhere, not even in this world. I was sharply yanked out of the way as some sort of tall, thin creature I could not make out in the dark lashed out at me, and I glanced quickly back at Wilson.

"Better be careful about that," he suggested 'helpfully'.

"YOU DON'T THINK?" I snapped. Wilbur's tail curled up in amusement.

"I remember, back in the archipelago," he started. "We didn't have tentacles. Nope, we had these annoying creatures called Flups. They'd pop out of the swamps and hop at you for _ever._ It was _horribly annoying_." He seemed to get sidetracked because he veered off to the side to examine what looked like a carrot in the silver light with huge leaves. "What's this about?" He poked it, and as soon as he did, a tiny creature- which still looked like a carrot but with tiny arms and legs- popped out of the hole and saw the monkey, staring at him with huge eyes.

 _What the heck is that?_

He took a few steps away from it, and it followed him, then promptly began to hop up and down and make annoying squeaking noises. He grinned nervously at each one of us in turn. "Yeah, like that. Hey you, get lost." He poked it again with one claw extended. It let out a little hurt cry- I wasn't sure if it was emotional or actual pain- and ran several feet away from him, then continued to be annoying.

I glared at Wilbur, but he didn't seem to notice. "SIMPLE." I stalked over to the creature. It didn't even seem to notice that I was there, and kicked it as hard as I could. I let out another sharp cry, but then disappeared down a slope. Nick looked slightly annoyed, Wilson was trying to cover up a laugh, and Wilbur just stared at me with an open mouth.

"Why did you do that!?" He demanded.

"I TEND TO DO THAT TO THINGS THAT ANNOY ME," I replied purposefully.

He flicked his tail. "You jerk."

"Yeah yeah, we all think WX is a jerk," Wilson stepped in front of him.

 _Look who's talking._

"And we all think Wilbur is annoying."

He flicked his tail lightly and gave me a triumphant look, as though his insult was better.

"But no one is kicking anyone."

"Completely unfair," Wilbur muttered, and I shot a glare at him. He met my gaze with a goofy grin, that looked especially odd on the monkey. 'He's just jealous' he mouthed, but before I could ask him what he meant he launched himself ahead.

"Talk about unfair!" Wilson protested, tailing after him. "Why do you have to be so _fast_?"

"Jealous!" He called back. Nick stopped walking, and glanced at me.

"You look sad," he commented.

 _Sad? Why would I look sad?_ I wondered. I shook my head. "I'M NOT. TRUST ME I'M NOT."

He sighed. "Why do I find that hard to believe?"

I almost said something back, but he walked away, and I was left alone. I wasn't sure what to do. Should I go back or follow them still? Distant squeaking of the carrot creature decided that for me, and I ran ahead. _We're going to be free..._


	107. Chapter 5 Darkness Part 13

**Chapter 5 of 5**

 **Darkness**

 _ **Wilbur's POV**_

Apparently, the entire island was nothing but a large hook shape. It was a very linear placement as well- the hook was split into sections and each section had a single thing. By the time we reached the last part of it, we found ourselves stumbling upon what must have been thousands of heaps of destroyed robots. I saw WX's 'eyes' go wide at the sight of this. _He's wondering what could have done this,_ I thought. _I'm surprised he didn't guess it as quickly as I did._ My suspicions were correct, because when we reached the wooden thing, Webber was leaning against it, his eyes closed as though he was sleeping while standing up.

"How did he get here so quick?" Nick wondered out loud.

"Magic," I replied. Wilson held the things, and he placed each of them on the wooden surface before turning to face the spider, who's eyes flickered open as we neared.

"What took you guys so long?" He joked, grabbing the ring thing and twirling it around his finger. The humor died from his eyes after a second, and I thought I caught a glimpse of the redness around him growing tighter. "We... we going now?"

"Isn't that what we planned?" Wilson pointed out, staring hungrily at the Teleportato.

Webber sighed, closed his eyes, and nodded once, before turning his back to him and fusing the ancient pieces together, just as he had always done. Once he had finished, the machine sputtered into life again. The red bind grew tighter. Just as we gathered around it, though, he let out a sudden cry of pain, and the color burst around me, the world around me turning black and white as the being of pure dark energy landed lightly on the wooden thing, eyeing it with the same hunger Wilson had. **"Yo̕u͡ a͞r̡ę ̕t͝r͝y̷ìng͞ to ̡l̨e̷a̛v̛e?̧"̡** It demanded.

"Go away, Nightmare," he hissed, treating it like it was an annoying insect. "I'm done with you. I'm leaving, and you cannot stop me." He turned his blind eyes to face the demon.

 **"̶I ͝ma͠y̴ n̴ot be a͠ble͡ ̶to̢ ͠s̷t̶op̕ y̨o͟u͏.͡..͝ but̨ ́y̛o͡úr fri҉e̶n̵ds ͞are͠ ̕vu̡l̷ner̶able.̧"͢** It turned its gaze to me. The other three who could not see him looked annoyed or confused.

Shock, then rage came over the spider. "You think you can take be down by trying to take down my friends?" He looked down, gritting his teeth, before flashing a glowing blade in his hand. "Wilson, Nick, WX, Wilbur, you guys go. I'll take care of it."

"Take care of what!?" Wilson demanded.

He flipped around, his eyes still burning with anger. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you, Wilson! Get _out_!" With a flick of his wrist, he had forced them next to the thing, and they disappeared underground as the shadowy hands dragged them under. I opened my mouth to say something, and he looked at me, his eyes still blazing. I yelped in shock as I received the same treatment.

" _Brace yourself now the true hero has appeared,"_ I heard him whisper.

 _"I will stand up and lay down all of my fears._

 _Not even a single soul you tried to spare._

 _Raise your weapon try to fight me if you dare!"_

Nightmare tipped its head. **"Si̧ngi̛ng?"** It spat.

 _"I'm sorry for this, Wilbur."_ As these words crossed my mind, I was dragged under as well.

 _ **Webber's POV**_

I turned to look at the demon, terror pounding together with rage in my destroyed heart. "I'd rather die doing what I love, and protecting what I care about, than being a coward and leaving you alive!"

 **"̢Y̵òu͠ ͟p̶la͟n͠ ̶ơn̨ k͏il͢ļìn͞g͟ me?"̴** It asked, its voice sharp with disbelief. **"̴Ţh̨ȩn it̶'͞s ̕f҉ìn̛ally̨ tim̧e͏ ́to ̧do ́w̕h̕at͠ t̶h͠e̢ m͞as̀te̸r̡ has or̶d̶er҉ed̡...̴"**

 _"Deep in my soul, a feeling comes through._

 _Everyone's hearts are now beating as one!_

 _I'll give my everything_

 _To save them from you."_

It flashed towards me with blinding speed, slashing cruel claws across my chest. It took me seconds to recompose myself enough to counter attack it.

 **"Y̶ou͝ kno͟w̸ y҉o̢u̢ w͞iĺl ́f͢a͞il! ̕Y̡o͠u hav̨e ̀no c͞lu͞e ho͢w t҉o ̨use͠ yo͟ur͝ p͞o͡w̶er͏s!͠ I ̡hav̧e k͟nơw̕n̴ ̡e҉v̶e̷r҉ since t̢ḩis̶ wo͠r̸l͞d̀ ͢ẁa҉s̀ ͢c̕r͢ea̷t̶eḑ!"**

 _"With all I've got, I'm striking you down._

 _This is my honor_

 _My duty_

 _My vow!_

 _One day we'll be out of the... shadows."_

Some part of me was calm. I knew it was a kill or be killed situation. I knew only one of us would walk away. And yet, my moves were relaxed in fluent, while it was lashing out with as much power as it could muster. I knew I still had one thing against it- the one thing I had had since day one. My speed.

 _"Everyone's hopes_

 _are shared in one dream!_

 _It lives with elation that I want to keep._

 _All of your numbers are not what they seem."_

It clawed furiously at me, reopening old wounds. I flinched and let out a silent cry as it ripped open my stomach again.

 _"This is our one and last victory call._

 _Not even you can slay such noble cause!_

 _I know I'm not gonna fall..."_

Training from Charlie came flooding back to me. The demon roared with fury as I dodged its attacks with ease, launching my own with devastating accuracy. With a surge of strength, it latched onto me again with its shadowed claws, my heart pounding faster and faster every second. I broke away, feeling my energy begin to burn away.

 _"I regret all of the things, that I know I've left, un-spoken._

 _I would give them all to you, if I could just turn back the time._

 _Darkness covers every line_

 _Now the final peace is broken._

 _I will keep unto my promise_

 _This faithful burden is mine!"_

I forced all my energy back to myself, using it to block instead of attack. My strength was ebbing away. I launched myself at it, ripping apart its apparition with my claws. It reformed, panting, but triumph shining in its soulless eyes.

 _"We were climbing higher up,_

 _but now one-by-one we're falling..._

 _Still I take them to the top!_

 _You can't break my spirit in time!_

 _This will your last mistake_

 _It will be your fi-nal trial_

 _This..._

 _Will be the end of your reign... on me."_

I gathered my energy around the demon, trying to contain it. It roared and flung itself at the orb forming around it, ripples forming where it crashed. I enclosed the orb, its eyes wide as it did not know I could do this.

 _"I won't try to run away,_

 _even if you see me falling._

 _She will take them to the top!_

 _Gather all her courage in time!_

 _This will be your final breath_

 _Fight against me one fi-nal time_

 _E-ven if you don't have to try..."_

The last of the snarls died away as the orb was compressed tightly into a small, purple gem. I felt like I had no power left. My limbs were weary, and my vision was blurry. I stumbled over to the wooden thing. I was surprised that I managed to get that far, and I blacked out before even the shadow hands came to claim me.

 _ **A/N:**_ **Oh look! In the sky! Is it a bird! Is it a plane! It's -gasp- credit!**

 **Song: Battle Against A True Hero [Undertale Fanvocal] (Sorrynotsorry)**

 **By: MilkyChan**

 **I also mentioned another song by MilkyChan in a previous chapter, MEGALOVANIA [Undertale Fanvocal]**


	108. Epilogue: Checkmate

**Epilogue**

 **Checkmate**

 **_Webber's POV_**

I woke up in a pool of my own blood. I felt strange, weak physically and mentally. My mind was numb for the first few minutes, but eventually I started to remember what had happened prior. For a moment of wild hope, I thought that I had taken out Nightmare once and for all. I could not have had such luck though, because in just a few moments excitement came over me. _I will finally get to see the master!_

So, not the most loyal thought I had had.

I was awake long before my friends, staring blankly into the darkness that stretched on every side, and longing to give myself to it. My skin burned from the bright light, but for some reason I stayed in the light. I could not leave my friends, not even to make myself stop hurting. While I was waiting, I attempted to heal the wounds that had been reopened during the battle- wounds I had forgotten about even. _I wonder... I wonder if it wouldn't have been able to hurt me if I didn't have so many old wounds. Can it not even inflict its own wounds?_ I shivered slightly. Eyes belonging to no one peered at me in the darkness.

By the time Wilbur was stirring, I had gotten my palm and knuckles to stop bleeding. The gash on my stomach was a different story altogether, and I poured my energy into it, trying to heal without extracting so much power that the purple gem I held should shatter. He blinked awake, his eyes huge as he took in the landscape. "We're here..." he breathed. "And..." he visibly brightened at the sight of me. "And you're ali- I-I mean awake!" He slowly examined the length of my body, looking distraught at the sight of my stomach being sliced open once again. I held my arms around the wound, horrified and desperately hoping that everything that _should_ be in there would _stay_ in there. _Last thing he needs to see is exactly how far the wound goes._

"How about the others?" I asked, nodding to them and trying to take his attention away from it.

"Still snoozing, 'buncha sleepyheads." He seemed to take a deeper look at me, a look that meant he was not looking at me physically, but the glassy-eyed examination of the Gift of Sight at work. "You're... you're silver?"

I held up the purple gem, the very essence of Nightmare. "It's locked away... for now."

He relaxed, then shook the other three awake.

"Is this it?" Wilson asked, his voice small.

"Welcome to the Mas- Maxwell's domain," I bowed. I turned away from them, struggling to heal the wound that previously almost stole my life. _This is it_ , I thought. _After today... I won't be myself anymore..._

 _I'm going to be a King._ I swallowed back tears that threatened to spill into my vision. _I'll never see my friends again._ I looked at every one of them. _I'm going to miss them... I wonder if they'll miss me? Doubt it, we all knew this was coming, ever since the Ancient Guardian told me this is what I have to do._ A steady fear rose in my chest. _I really hope that the Nightmare Servant can become the Nightmare Captor. Or do I hope otherwise? I can't tell anymore..._ I gripped the purple gem, attempting to draw some strength from the crystal without releasing the demon. Ahead, the others would see the hallway fall into shadows, but I could see all the way down, my vision sharper than even Wilbur's now. And beyond that was a large room, but I could not see what lay inside of the room.

"ARE YOU READY?" WX's voice snapped me back into reality.

"Ready?" I echoed. "...I have to be, WX. I have no choice."

For a second, he looked almost sad, but he didn't say anymore. _I think I'm going to miss you and Wilbur the most._ I mentally sighed, looking ahead again.

"What are we waiting for!? Let's go!" Wilson exclaimed, surprising me with his giddiness.

"Right," Nick nodded once. I took a deep breath, and let them go ahead of me. I didn't want to be here- yet I did at the same time! Excitement pounded through me again and it took all of my strength to not skip ahead. Every step I took my happiness battled with horror increased. Suddenly, a reddish silver figure appeared in front of me, and my heart pounded in fear before I realized it was Charlie, not Nightmare.

"Please don't hurt him," she begged quietly. "He's not a bad guy... he's confused, and scared, just like you." She looked down at me. "Surely you of all would understand."

"I understand," I replied in a whisper. "I won't. I-I'll find a way." I glanced quickly around to make sure no one heard me.

"Thank you..." she disappeared again, and I realized that I was standing right on the edge of the room. I took another deep breath, realizing the others had stopped too, and walked in ahead of them.

The Throne room was... not at all what I expected. It was very empty and very plain. To the left of the opening was a small phonograph, playing music that WX grimaced at hearing, thinking something along the lines of 'Not this again'. Next to the phonograph was... Maxwell himself, sitting in what I assumed was the Nightmare Throne. To the side of that, there was a tiny piece that resembled the lock between worlds. Maxwell wasn't what I had expected either. He looked defeated and depressed, and was staring right through us. _Does he even know we're here?_ I clenched my fists. I was promised some really tough enemy to fight! None of us were sure of what to say or think, and we stood in silence. Suddenly, in a loud noise like breaking glass, the purple gem exploded in my grip, and I found myself running forward against my will and bowing down low to the defeated man. "Finally..." I murmured under my breath.

Someone grabbed my arm and roughly pulled me up, breaking the trance. "Get up," Wilson hissed. "This isn't the time to be bowing to our _enemy mind you_."

Maxwell chuckled, startling me. "Is this what you were expecting?" He asked. He motioned to the rest of the room. I didn't realize before since my gaze had been locked on him, but the perimeter of the whole area was lined with cages made of a slick black material- I assumed nightmare fuel. And in every single cage was a person. Someone who had tried to get here and failed. _I recognize them!_ I thought, my heart pounding. _Willow, Wes, Wolfgang... all of the people in Maxwell's book!_ "Forgive me if I don't get up..." I looked back up at him. "You've been an interesting... plaything, but I've grown tired of this game." _Plaything?_

I realized that every single person had their gazes tracked on me, with the exception of Wilson, Willow, and Wilbur. Wilson and Willow stared at each other in shock. " _It's her..."_ Wilson thought, his mouth agape.

 _"He's here too."_ Willow's mind echoed ominously.

Wilbur was holding what looked like a carved unicorn head, with it's bottom ragged as though it had broken off of something, examining every face closely before locking eyes with the girl I recognized as Wigfrid and padded over to her, handing her the head through the bars. She said something to him and he nodded, running back over to us. "She's kinda cute," he snickered, blushing faintly.

"Or maybe, They've grown tired of me." Beside me, I noticed the red shape of Nightmare stiffen. _There's something odd about his aura,_ I thought. _It's like... he has none... does he have no soul? Has he lost his soul after all this time?_ I couldn't help a side-glance at WX. _Even_ he _has an aura.. His lack of aura... how can I see him? I'm blind to normal vision._

"Heh. Took them long enough." Maxwell straightened slightly and stared me straight in the eye with terrifying intensity. "They'll show you terrible, beautiful things... It's best not to fight it."

 _I've learned that without you, thank you very much._

"There wasn't much here when I showed up. Just dust. And the Void. And Them."

Wilbur's tail quivered. "Yes," he looked up to try and catch Maxwell's eyes. "Yes, and me. And Tiger Lily. We're part of Them, aren't we, though?"

He nodded slowly, then continued on with his speech. "I've learned so much since then. I've build so much... but... even a King is bound to the board." I clenched my fists again, feeling energy swirl in my palm. _I will not be._ "You can't change the rules of the game." _Watch me._ "I don't know what they want. They... they just watch. Unless you get too close... Then..." he let out a tortured huff. "Well, there's a reason I stay so dapper." Maxwell looked at me again. "What year is it out there? Time moves different here."

"I do not know," I replied quietly.

He was silent for a few minutes. "Go on, stay a while. Keep us company. Or... put the key in the box. It's your decision." _Key? Oh! The Divining Rod!_ I reached over and took the rod from Wilson's grip, looking uneasily at the lock. "Either way, you're just delaying the inevitable. Reality is like that, sometimes. Would we know? Wouldn't all of us here today know? All of us came here not because of me, but because the shadows demanded it. They saw something special in each of you. But. Only five of you made it. Only five of the thirteen that came here are standing, free. Even when Nightmare lives among them. Even when everything was against them. Three, then four, then three, then four, then five." He shook his head. "I tried everything to pry you apart... why must you be so trusting of each other? You never give up, do you?"

I swallowed back tears again. "We cannot afford to. We have a goal, Maxwell." I remembered the ring Charlie had asked for me to give to him, and I ran forward, taking it off of my necklace and dropping it into his hand. "Charlie... Charlie asked for me to give this to you. She said it would mean a lot to you."

"Charlie?" He rasped. "She... she remembers...?" He looked down at his hands. "We used to work together," he admitted quietly, his voice thick with emotion. "It was fine until..."

 **"͝Unti̡l͏ ͟you ̛d̢e̶cid͝ed ̴t̡o̶ p̶l͏ày w̴ith ̧m͞e."͏** Nightmare hissed. **"̡Yo͏u͞ co̧u͠l͝dn'͠t ͠s͞ta̢n͏d ͏jus͞t̸ ̶yòur litţl̵e̷ ͏rh̨ino͠ ͡tr̷i̵çk̡..͞.͠ s͏o yoù loǫk̸e̴d t̵o ͠me ̴f̷or h͞e̛l͞p̧.͝ ̷Dés̢pi̴ţe ̧t̨h͏e w̨a̧rn͏i͏ńg҉s. Yoų w̷e̕re ̡so͝ eagȩr t̛oo. ̨S̸ham̵e it͡ ͠ended̸ s͢o ͡ho̡r̵rib̛ly fo͡r ̴you.̶..͝ ìt ̶a͡lw҉ay͏s dǫe͞s.̴ The An͢cient͝s wa҉nt̡e̶d to p̶l̵ay, too̡... the͝y ̡l̵ea͏rn̢ed͟ t̴h͠e̢i̶r̷ ̵less҉on. Į w̡įp҉ed th͝em̧ ou̵t̛, ̵d̡es̵trǫy̛ed̷ ̨thei҉r so͞c̢i͡ety, ͡d͏eşt̴royed eve͏rỳth̡in̸g th̀ey hàd̢.̷.̨.̸"̷**

Wilbur looked down, not meeting the demon's gaze as it swept past him.

I didn't pay it any attention though. I kept my gaze steadily on the man on the chair, my mind preoccupied with the knowledge of what I had to do.

"You know... I used to think you were a bad guy... but you're really just like us, aren't you?" I looked slowly between every single face in the room, feeling as though I had known every single one of them personally. _Wilson, the Gentleman Scientist. Maybe not the nicest person I know, but he's smart, and ready to face danger. Willow, the Firestarter. Passionate and kind, yet a keen pyromaniac. Wolfgang, the Strongman. Dumb as a rock, but powerful as can be. Wendy, the Bereaved. Strongly a pessimist, but completely loyal to her sister, even if she has already left her._ I knew that feeling. _WX-78, the Soulless Automaton. Arrogant and self-centered... but secretly fiercely loyal to those who manage to get onto his good side. Wickerbottom, the Librarian. Maybe a bit annoying, but extremely intelligent. Woodie, the Lumberjack. Obsessed with trees and harbors a deadly yet powerful secret._ I blinked. That sounds familiar. _Wes, the Silent. Quiet and patient._ _Wigfrid, the Performance Artist. Her belief that she is in just... a play.. makes her fearless. Walani, the Unperturbable. Lazy, but knows the ocean like the back of her hand. Warly, the Culinarian. A bit on the picky side, but a fantastic cook. Woodlegs, the Pirate Captain. Brave and ready to face whatever the ocean has to throw at him. Wilbur, the Monkey King. A touch full of himself, but forgiving and ready to give chance after chance to redeem yourself._

 _I am lucky enough to be standing in the presence of these amazing people._

 _And now... now it's time for me to give the honor back._

 _Me. Webber, the Indigestible. Immature, a lot to learn... stupid enough to almost get myself killed time after time again...but here I am. And I have a destiny to fulfill._

I stepped forward and gripped the divining rod as hard as I could, then pressed down to unlock the keyhole by the Nightmare Throne.

"Wait!" Nick ran forward and knocked it away from me. I was shocked. Didn't he want to go home to? "Isn't there another way? A way that doesn't end like this? With _all_ of us free?"

"No. They will not allow it."

"Nick... your sword..." I croaked, realizing exactly what he was getting at.

"Don't," someone in the cages warned. _Willow again_. "It'll destroy your sword. I've tried."

Muffled agreement came from the others.

Nick stared at the shining blue blade for a few seconds, as though considering whether or not to take the risk. He mumbled something under his breath, then swung at the Throne with all his might.

Nothing happened.

Or at least, I _thought_ nothing happened.

After a second, then Throne seemed to crack, then shatter, being absorbed into the blade. Maxwell struggled to stand upright as the Nightmare Throne disappeared beneath him. He looked ecstatic for a few moments, before taking on an expression of pure agony. I closed my eyes tightly shut, but I could not block out the sounds of his agonized screaming. As it faded, I dared to open them again to see nothing but dust blowing in the wind where he once stood. _He's dead_ , I thought, my vision swirling. _He's... he's dead... after all this time._ I fell to my knees, tears streaming down my face. _I'm sorry Charlie. I didn't want to hurt him..._

The world seemed to shift beneath my feet, and suddenly the demon standing beside me slammed into me, sending me to the ground and snapping me from my sorrowful state.. **"Y̢̢͞o͡ų͢ fo̸ǫl̀͏! Ỳ͞o̸ù-̕͡ Y͠o̢u̵͠!̵̷̢** Even the demon paused, its normally hatred-filled eyes alight with terror. It looked down at its shaking hands. I heard a pathetic whimper escaping from it. **"̕W̸-́W̴hat ̀i͞s ̶h̛a͞p҉pen͢i҉ng!͏?Ẃ̵̴̴h̡̨a̧͏̸̢͞ţ͢ ̵͠͞͝ì̵͏͞s̢̕҉͝ ̴̛͝͡t҉͟h̴͟i͏̶̷͢s̀́͢͡ ͡͝e͢͢͢m̴҉ó͢͝͡t̸́͟͡i͏̵͞ò̴̢n̵̷͝͏.̸̷̸.̷̶.̷̷̡́ ͞͏ẁ͢h̷̸̴a̸̧̛͝t̵̡͟͠.̧̀҉̡́.̶̧͟.̷̨̛͟.̶̕҉̧"҉̷͠**

I lifted my chin. "It's called fear. You're afraid."

It bared its teeth at me, and tried to run at me again, but its form began to dissipate, and its face contorted in pain. It stopped, frozen in place, gritting its teeth in agony. Unlike Maxwell though, it made no sound that hinted it was suffering the way its body language screamed. It was completely silent even as it writhed in pain, trying in vain to reach me again before it collapsed, scoring its claws in the marble ground. It let out a silent roar of fury, struggling to stand, forming a dull blade in its fist and attempting to stab me in the chest. I watched coldly as it finally stopped, shivering in pain and fear in a nearly fetal position, before too turning to dust.

Wilbur flicked his tail to lightly tap my ankle, then shot a glance at Nick, who was still looking slightly dazed. "Great job Nick! You _broke the world_."

"Broke the world?" I echoed.

"Well, let's just say he just destroyed the core of the world. Which means bye bye world, and bye bye us."

He looked alarmed, then ashamed, and lowered his head.

 _No._ I thought. Even though Nightmare was gone, I still felt power thrumming beneath my pelt. I knew there was something I could do. I closed my eyes and concentrated every last bit of power in my entire body, then slowly released it to the people in the room. The cages shattered then disappeared. The people began to fade. All of them except for me... and Wilbur. Upon opening my eyes again, I realized by the suddenly fearful looks given to me by several of them that they were seeing my fully darkened form.

"Everyone, be calm," I whispered, my words somehow carrying to everyone in the room. I reached up and gently caressed the flower on the chain around my neck. "I-I know you don't know me, but I'm here to help." I looked slowly to each one of them. "Don't fight this. I... I'm taking you elsewhere. Somewhere you can't get hurt. Now I know you may be wondering why you should trust me." I locked gazes with Wendy, who was only a few years older than me. "The truth is... I don't know. I... I am responsible for many deaths in this room. Me and Nightmare. I think... I think I should right my wrongs. You will be safe now. Just please... don't fight me." I turned to look at my friends, who were staring at their rapidly fading hands in confusion.

Wilson took a step forward. "Webber-"

"No," I snarled. "No. I won't hear from you. You made my life horrible, especially after Nightmare. You know what? I don't care anymore. I'm tired of this... I understand I shouldn't exist, but that doesn't mean you have to hate me for it! The only reason I'm not leaving you here to die is because I'm not spending the last few minutes of my life stuck in a room with _you_. So shut up and don't talk to me- don't even think to me!"

He looked shocked, then closed his mouth, not taking his eyes off of me.

"LAST FEW MINUTES?" WX questioned, taking a step towards me. "YOU'RE... YOU'RE SACRIFICING YOURSELF?"

"I have no choice but to. Wilbur and I... it would take all of my power just to save one of us. Natives, remember? We're bound to this world, unlike you guys. To break that bond... that's all the power I've got." I shook my head. "You'll have to go without me."

"I'M NOT LETTING YOU DIE AGAIN," he growled. "I'M NOT."

I closed my eyes tightly again, flashing my hand out in his direction to send him flying away. _Don't fight me..._ There was a _crash_ as he smacked against one of the pillars, and for a second I was afraid I hurt him more than I thought I did but he struggled back to his feet, his gaze dark with pain, two fresh cracks in his face from the bottom of his eyes down under his chin. _It almost looks like he's crying..._ I thought. He stumbled towards me. "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?"

"Because I can't be responsible for your death again!" I cried, turning around and holding my arms close to my chest.

He let out a heavy, robotic sigh, and I stiffened as I felt his hand on my shoulder. "CAN I JUST SAY ONE LAST THING THOUGH?"

"What?" I spat, trying to hold back tears once more.

He gave me a crooked half smile. "I JUST WANTED TO SAY... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KID."

Shock flooded through me, and I flipped around to face him, my eyes wide. "How did...?"

"BEING DEAD FOR AS LONG AS I WAS TEACHES YOU SOME THINGS..."

I couldn't help but break into tears again, running forward and hugging him fiercely. "I'm going to miss you... so much. I... I'm sorry it has to end like this..." I took my necklace off and shoved it into his grip. "Remember me, too?" I whispered with a last caress of the flower that hung at its chain.

"YOU'VE MADE SURE OF THAT," he commented in a pouting tone of voice, tracing the symmetrical cracks down his face. Wilbur hopped onto my shoulder, taking off his crown and putting it with my necklace.

"Remember this world," he told him solemnly.

He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could the last bit of him disappeared, along with everyone else. I sat down heavily, trying to wipe the tears off of my face.

"So... you ready to watch the world end?" Wilbur asked in a voice that was only half-joking.

I looked up at him and nodded. "And you know Wilbur... at this point, I don't think that I would want to with anyone else."


	109. True Epilogue

_**A/N:**_ **Huh? What's that? What's this... 'falling action' you speak of? You mean there's supposed to be more AFTER the climax? Well this is unfair, but planned for. Here ya go... official last chapter EVER. Also be warned... if you didn't already figure it out, Nick is a Nord... from Skyrim... and the story he's from is a SUPER crossover story.. so yeah, that's a thing to beware lol**

Beings were merely shadows in the destroyed world. Echoing, void of all hope, and promising death in its wake. Two shadows stood together in the ruined remains of what was once their home, eyes gleaming with vicious hunger. Two demons left to watch the emptiness alone.

"It's done," said the first quietly, his childlike voice quiet.

"Yes," replied the second. His gaze was sad and proud and filled with grief at the same time. "The survivors have returned home. The fall of five indeed."

"Do you wish you had done something different?" The child looked at the man beside him, his eyes tortured. "I do not."

"If I had done something different, things would've ended the same way. As I said, reality is inevitable."

They stood in silence.

"He didn't mean it," the man blurted suddenly, causing the child to flinch.

"Who?" The answer came to his mind as soon as he asked, and he dipped his head. "I know... but why he changed so much in such a short span of time..."

"It was my fault. Remember when I said I tried to pry you apart? That was one of those instances. The entire time."

Webber's shoulders slumped. "I feel guilty. I said some mean things to him before he left."

Maxwell did not meet his gaze. "He was fully aware of his actions. What he was not aware of was that his feelings were simulated. He most likely feels a similar guilt."

More silence.

"Is this it? Is this the end?" Webber asked softly.

"For us it is."

"What of Wilbur? He did not leave before... did he?" He examined his claws, still black and bloody.

"No. He is... not here though."

A deep growl rumbled in the child's throat. "This is a sight reserved for us demons, isn't it?" He spat the word 'demon' with a particular hatred. "Where is he?" Maxwell's silence was unsettling, and he looked up to see the previous Nightmare Captor looking at him thoughtfully. "What?"

"You really are lonely, aren't you?"

A half-smile appeared on the boy's face. "All of my friends are gone, living their own lives... I'd like to know what became of my only friend who didn't make it out with them..." he sighed. "I feel bad for not being able to save him too. Why are you looking at me like that?"

Maxwell smiled. "...Do you still have your powers?"

…

"The Revolution!" Wilson breathed. "Nick, are you serious?"

The blue-eyed warrior laughed lightly. "Well, yeah! What do you two think?"

Wilson had gone positively sparkle-eyed, but WX-78 looked uncertain. "I-I CAN'T," WX stuttered.

"Why not?" He asked, shocked.

"Come on," Nick urged. "I think you are something none of the R&D Department have seen before."

"R&D," Wilson repeated, his voice filled with awe.

He blinked. Of course he was... Look where he was built. "THANK YOU, NICK. BUT I HAVE OTHER BUSINESS TO ATTEND TO."

Before Nick or Wilson could say anything else, he turned to walk away, a yellow necklace hanging by its chain in his grip.

…

" _I used to like to walk the straight and narrow line._

 _I used to think that everything was fine._

 _Sometimes I'd like to sit and gaze for days through sleepless dreams._

 _All alone and trapped in time._

 _All alone and trapped in time."_

A haunting melody echoed across the village. To and from people rushed, but not a single one was singing. The voice came from the very center of the village, from a child daring to lean against the Guardian.

 _"I wonder what tomorrow has in mind for me._

 _Or am I even in its mind at all?_

 _Perhaps I'll get a chance to look ahead and see._

 _Soon as I find myself a crystal ball._

 _Soon as I find myself a crystal ball."_

The lyrics were sang with a haunting chill. His eyes half-closed, his chin tipped upwards. However, he stopped abruptly. A noise sounded nearby that he felt like he should remember.

 _Tell me tell me where I'm going_

 _I don't know where I've been._

 _Tell me tell me won't you tell me_

 _And then tell me again._

The boy stood, his fur on end and whiskers twitching. The Guardian grunted in its sleep, but did not awake.

 _My heart is breaking_

 _My body's aching_

 _And I don't know where to go._

 _So tell me tell me won't you tell me_

 _I've just got to know._

A creature was being dragged out of the caves. It looked perfectly miserable, it's fur wet and muddy, but there was no mistaking him. _He's so young!_

"Wilbur!" He cried, waving wildly towards the young prime ape.

He turned slowly, uncertain, but his eyes widened in shock and surprise and he let out a happy noise.

 _Crystal ball_

 _So many things I need to know_

 _Crystal ball_

 _So many things I gotta know_

 _Crystal ball_

 _Won't you tell me please before I go_

 _Crystal ball_

He did not try to intercept the creatures dragging him to a small cage, but quietly followed, trying not to be seen. Once locked up and the Ancients moved away, Webber rushed over to him. "Am I really talking to you? Like... from our time? I'm confused by what's happening right now."

He straightened and cleared his throat. "You mean... the _Night Monster's best friend?_ " He exclaimed, his voice higher pitched and softer than the spider was used to. His accent was still there though, although now it didn't seem out of place. Everyone around them had the accent heavily in their voices.

 _If you should see me walking through your dreams at night_

 _Would you please direct me_

 _Where I ought to be_

 _I've been looking for a crystal ball_

 _To shed the light_

 _To find a future in me..._

 _To find a future in me..._

In a cage beside the ape slept a small, orange-colored hound-like creature, which he recognized easily as a sharkitten. Wilbur recognized her too, waving his tail in greeting as her eyes flickered open. "You're new," she murmured sleepily. "I'm Tiger Lily, what's your name?"

 _Crystal ball_

 _There's so many things I need to know_

 _Crystal ball_

 _There's so many things I've got to know_

 _Crystal ball_

…

 _I... I wish you could swim._

 _Like the dolphins... like dolphins can swim._

 _Though nothing_

 _Though nothing will keep us together_

 _We can beat them_

 _Forever and ever_

 _We could be heroes_

 _For just one day_

"Hiya, you must be the new recruit!" Chirped a cheerful voice, making an already nervous Wilson jump. The... creature... who greeted him was some sort of anthropoid fox perhaps? It had pointed ears, two puffy tails, and blue eyes, its fur mostly orange with a fluffy white jaw, chest, and tail tips. "I'm Miles, but everyone calls me Tails. Nick said your name was Wilson? I think you're in our department."

He was shocked into silence for a bit. "Oh, Nick mentioned you. I didn't realize you were..."

"A fox?" He finished, with a hint of humor in his voice. "Don't worry. I won't seem that different when you meet the others."

"The others?" Wilson echoed, slightly dazed.

 _I...I will be King_

 _And you... you will be Queen._

 _Though nothing..._

 _Nothing will drive them away_

 _We can beat them_

 _Forever and ever_

"Oh, there's one of them now!" The fox beckoned another creature forward. She was either a large lizard or some sort of small dinosaur, spikes running down her neck from the top of her head to disappear beneath a white lab coat. "Hey Alphys, meet the new guy!"

She appeared as nervous as Wilson felt, her voice quiet and shy.

 _But we could be heroes_

 _For just one day_

 _We can be us._

 _For just one day._

"H-Hi, you must be Wilson!" She looked friendly at least. "I'm Alphys, the ex-royal scientist." She suddenly looked as though she wished she never said that.

 _How can I compete with a royal scientist?_ He wondered wretchedly.

 _I... I remember_

 _Standing... by the wall._

 _The guns_

 _They shot above our heads_

 _And we kissed_

 _As though nothing could fall._

"I will warn you, though," Tails told him. "We aren't exactly- well, normal."

"I can tell," he replied warily, looking at the two creatures standing before him.

"Doctor Hawkins i-is out d-doing something right now," Alphys stuttered. She didn't sound like she was stuttering due to nervousness anymore. She sounded like she just had a stuttering problem.

 _And the shame..._

 _Was on the other side._

 _We can beat them_

 _Forever and ever!_

 _But we can be heroes_

 _For just one day._

"Ah, there you are, Wilson, I see you are getting acquainted with Tails and Doctor Alphys?" Nick nodded to the lizard and fox as he walked up beside them. "How do you like it?"

"I'm eager to see what kind of equipment you have," Wilson replied, trying to appear not as nervous as he felt.

Nick looked mildly amused. "I think you, Tails, Doctor Alphys and Doctor Hawkins will get along just fine. Shall I show you the lab?"

 _We can be heroes._

 _We can be heroes._

 _We can be heroes._

 _We can be heroes._

 _For just one day._

…

 _This was a triumph._

 _I'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS._

 _It's hard to overstate my satisfaction._

In a science facility miles upon miles below ground, where everything that dared be build looked indeed quite alike. White, gray, brown, orange, and blue marked everything, and every bot had a single optic- a glowing, colored iris that housed a sight mechanic. You'd think a single, eyeless, tan-colored robot with a glowing yellow necklace would stand out more.

 _Aperture Science._

 _We do what we must, because, we can._

 _For the good of all of us_

 _Except the ones who are dead._

His footsteps were deliberately loud, daring himself to get caught. He wasn't afraid of her anymore. He would finally come back to his roots after four, long, painful years. A year of that he was alone. Alone and afraid and left to wonder what would happen if she ever caught him. But he was not afraid. He kept his chin up and shoulders back. He would get revenge for what she made him go through.

 _But there's no sense crying over every mistake_

 _You just keep on trying 'till you run out of cake._

 _And the science gets done and you make a neat gun_

 _For the people who are still alive._

Ahead, he spotted red lasers pointing across the hallway. _Sentry turrets._ He walked purposefully in front of them.

"Target acquired!" One chirped, ready to spew bullets in his direction before stopping suddenly. The tang of blood was heavy on the air, and he noticed that the hall was painted red with blood of people who tried to pass but failed. It didn't matter to him. He was not a human. He was not a test subject. He was not a suspect of foul play. He was not a target.

 _I'm not even angry_

 _I'm being so sincere right now._

 _Even though you broke my heart_

 _And killed me._

He hesitated as he reached a long, glass hallway overlooking the facility. He was about to do it. He was about to face his greatest fear.

His own creator.

 _And tore me to pieces_

 _And threw every piece into a fire_

 _As they burned it hurt because_

 _I was so happy for you!_

WX-78 felt his pride and resolve begin to deteriorate. The glass hallway held too many painful memories, and he shuddered away from them. He knew what lay ahead, but it took him many minutes of self-encouragement to move past the emancipation grill.

 _Now these points of data make a beautiful line_

 _And we're out of Beta we're releasing on time_

 _So I'm GLaD I got burned_

 _Think of all the things we learned for the people who are still alive._

She was an enormous super-computer/ robot hybrid of some sort. She was turned away from him, but he knew her face was made of a smooth white material that curved slightly up and down, a glowing orange optic showing through. Thick black wires would be attaching her head to her chassis, a smooth white underbelly with even more wires, now being held together by small black clamps. He saw her back, more white metal protecting the largest bundle of wires on her, which then went up and up, mixed with a handful of orange wires until disappearing into the ceiling.

 _Go ahead and leave me_

 _I think I prefer to stay inside_

 _Maybe you'll find someone else to help you_

 _Maybe Black Mesa?_

 _That was a joke, HAHA, FAT CHANCE._

 _Anyway this cake is great, it's so delicious and moist!_

As soon as he entered her chamber, she froze in place from what she was doing. He knew he shouldn't be here. He didn't care anymore. "What are you doing here?" She asked, her voice deathly quiet.

 _Look at me: Still talking when there's science to do_

 _When I look out there it makes me GlaD I'm not you_

 _I've experiments to run_

 _There is research to be done_

 _On the people who are still alive_

"I BELIEVE YOU KNOW."

She turned, slowly, her normally free-moving parts stiff with rage. She shoved her optic into his face aggressively. "You don't belong here. You are supposed to be dead."

"I DO NOW," he spat. "AND IT IS TIME TO END THIS ONCE AND FOR ALL, GLADOS."

 _And believe me I am still alive!_

 _I'm doing science and I'm still alive!  
_

 _I feel fantastic and I'm still alive!_

 _While you're dying I'll be still alive!  
_

 _And when you're dead I will be still alive!  
_

 _Still alive!_

 _Still alive._

 _ **Crystal Ball: Styx**_

 _ **Heroes: Wallflowers Version**_

 _ **Still Alive: Jonathan Coulton (Portal Outro Version)**_


	110. Random Tidbit Sheet

**So I thought the best way to send this off was a giant page of facts! Everything here is true, and not something I just randomly came up with while surfing on the internet. Enjoy!**

-Pyrite was, in fact, a hallucination post her death, not a spirit

-WX had a mild case of monophobia, or the fear of being alone

-Popsicle and Pyrite's relationship was loosely based off of Starflight and Sunny's relationship from the Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland, in which Starflight held romantic feelings for Sunny, but she saw him as a brother

-WX got his original arrogance from his creator, but he often seeked out someone to model himself after, explaining his arrogance in game but how he is able to actually show emotions from the story. It's possible he looked up to Webber

-Erika was originally there to be a one-time crush sort of thing before I decided on the Tyler and Erika storyline

-ErikaXWebber was a highly supported ship by my brother, even after the reveal of the fact they were siblings

-Ariana was forced into the story by the same brother, because he would not leave me alone about adding a tsundere depth worm

-Nightmare's personality was loosely based off of Chara from Undertale, and his powers were originally loosely based off of Bill Cipher's (hence firey blue death hand)

-Wilson and Pyrite were never supposed to die

-Pyrite's death was a last-minute decision

-Nick and Wilbur were never supposed to be in the story

-Nick was added per request by my brother, since we were going to be doing a crossover with his fanfiction before he stopped writing it

-Wilbur was supposed to be a 1-chapter kind of character, but my brother wanted Nick and Wilbur to meet

-It was incredibly funny to write mean characters named Zerp and Chester

-Several characters are painted differently in-story than they are in-game. This is to show that one character can have two sides, and they can act different around others depending on certain factors

-I think it's inevitable that pretty much everyone who was in the world for any amount of time had Nyctophobia, or the fear of darkness... Charlie

-Webber's full name was... -pause for effect- Tyler Jay Underwood... BOOM

-The story originally had no plot, as it was supposed to be something for me to mess around in while I had writer's block for my Warriors fanfiction... since then it has far surpassed it in length, and is the 'jewel of my writing' as of now

-Nightmare fuel has different effects on animals than humans. The most notable change in the appearance of an animal is grayed out fur, unlike a human, which it completely destroys any physical form they had. If Webber were still human, he would've gained traits more like Charlie, being hardly solid, and easily slipping between human and the dark form

-Pyrite was never supposed to be in the story

-Popsicle was a nudge nudge to some of my friends, as he was a recycled character from an old crossover I had. He was an ice hound then and he was WX's pet

-Popsicle's name was an ongoing joke between my brother and I

-My brother wanted me to call Popsicle 'Bobsicle'

-Pyrite's name was a reference to the 'Pyrite Mask' dragon from the Wings of Fire series

-Erika and Webber always felt an odd bond, even prior to finding they were siblings. It is possible they both originally believed this to be a crush, but neither of them thought of the other like that

-There was supposed to be no main character... I have no clue how/when/or why Webber kind of took on the main character role

-Nick was supposed to be a more important character, but several ideas were scrapped for him because my brother didn't want him to 'be more important than the characters I already had'

-I was completely baffled on how to end the story properly, until my brother offered Nick and his ending

-Nick was supposed to kill Charlie

-Popsicle _was_ supposed to stay dead

-Webber's older sister, Alyvia, was a character recycled from an old fanfic I had

-My friend, Lilypaw, helped to create Erika, including some character traits and her name

-I proofread almost none of my chapters.. as you can probably tell by stupid errors

-It was always the chapters I had biggest plans for that turned out the worst (insert sad face here)

-Surprisingly enough, I actually did quite a bit of research on the game, adventure mode chapters, lore, and even some real life things while writing... though it may not show

-Nick absorbed the world in his sword ("Great job Nick _you broke the world!_ " -Wilbur)

-The order of the first four adventure mode chapters were a nudge nudge to my brother's playthrough of it as Wigfrid

-Wigfrid freed Wes, but Wes was captured upon collapsing and Wigfrid died of a combination of freezing to death and bleeding out after the fight with the clockworks

-No one actually 'dies' in the world, they are weakened, then are dragged into Charlie's realm (Darkness) which Charlie then gives to Maxwell, or in the case of her more dangerous prisoners, keeps them around her

-This is possibly the most bipolar story I've ever read/written (Chapter 50 The Soulless Automaton compared to Chapter 54 'Ape' Not 'Monkey', anyone?)

-I once upon a time made a reason for the night monster's weakness to light, but said 'screw science, MAGIC!' because that's just how I am

-I always imagined the final battle against Webber's spider would be played to Stronger Than You (Chara Response) by MilkyChan, while the battle against Nightmare right before Checkmate was played to Battle Against a True Hero (Fan Vocal) Also by MilkyChan

-This entire story started as a set of inside-jokes my brother and I had

-Webber originally _was_ supposed to take the Nightmare Throne

-Also the fact that Webber was blind in his right eye was a nod to my real life Dad, who had surgery on his right eye that disabled it's sight abilities

-Okay yes, I did tie a blindfold around my right eye for a few hours to get the feel of being half-blind... it's called research, you know!

-Chapter 94 was incredibly confusing for me to write, and I was left feeling dazed for days afterwards because I still had no clue what happened

-Chapter 50 was my first ever attempt at a sad chapter... did it show?

-Originally, Wilbur was supposed to have no personality, and in fact, could not even speak to Webber. Later, I decided on his current traits

-Wilbur's personality was based off of Agent 9 from Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon

-Chapters such as Chapter 35 (Dragonfly battle) and Chapter 50 (Ancient Guardian battle) were supposed to be much longer, but I was unable to find out how to keep them interesting and long at the same time

-This story made first page in most reviews/favorites/followers AND took the title of the longest Don't Starve story on

-My good real life friend Lilypaw helped me to decide on some major elements in the story

-For some reason, I originally imagined Wilbur sounding like Nibbler (when he speaks in English) from Futurama

-Later, he was re-imagined with the voice of the lead monkey from Rio (whatever his name was)

-A friend of mine imagined Webber sounding like Ben Tenison (or however you spell that) from Ben 10, only with a very light British accent until he became fully himself again, of which Ben 10 with a heavier British accent

-Nightmare is a concept that was taking over my internet persona since Darkness Part 1, confusing and scaring people who know me from Vox Populi Minecraft Server/Forums, Steam, and Skype

-My brother once suspected that I had 'feelings' for Webber 0-0

-I can't leave a character dead for the life of me...

-The four Popsicle chapters that took place after Pyrite's death were named for 4 of the 6 stages of grief, Shock, Denial, Anger, and Depression

-Epilogue: Darkness was supposed to be his 'Acceptance', but the idea was scrapped when I did not want to take away from the feel that the end of Webber's Point of View had

-I didn't do a chapter for bargaining, because I kept wondering... how does one do bargaining for a DOG

-Chapter 72. Denial was almost called El Ma **ñana, which is Spanish for 'The Future' and is also a very touching Gorillaz song, which was referenced in said chapter "** ** _Maybe in time... you'll want to be mine." -_** **Popsicle thinking about Pyrite**

 **-The '̧c҉̡͡r͞e͏ep̶̡y ̷͞d̵e͡m̴̕ò̵̸n͡ ̨tȩ͟xţ͡'̢ used by Nightmare is Zalgo text bolded**

 **-Everything about the 'Poprite' ship went against a lot of stuff I built this story on- mainly a ship-free environment**

 **-A friend of mine wanted me to have Wilbur X Wilson, and another WX-78 X Webber**

 **-The ring that Charlie asked Webber to give to Maxwell was their engagement ring**

 **-Yes, I'm saying they were engaged before the Final Act**

 **-Webber sings on three different occasion. First time 'We Didn't Start the Fire' by Billy Joel, then 'Wish You Were Here' by Pink Floyd, then 'Battle Against a True Hero (Undertale Fanvocal)' by the Youtube user Milkychan... yes, Webber sang lyrics for an Undertale song**

-There was supposed to be a section in Tiger Lily's POV, the Ancient Guardian's POV, and Erika's POV as well as Popsicle's in Darkness

-Nightmare is EASILY the worst character I have EVER written with... there are many things that it does that you don't know about... hehehe

-Chapter 94 was the only chapter I had written before and didn't rewrite completely. The version I posted was written around... in the 60s? 70s? Somewhere around that time. I made very minor changes and POOF there's the chapter

-You should be proud of me... 3/5 of my main characters were alive by the end of the story... that's unusual for me! I guess it can be taken off my the fact they've all died minus Nick... well, and Wilbur...

-It appears that- when asking readers I talk to on a fairly regular basis- Webber took on the favorite character. By the end, he was my personal favorite as well, followed by Wilbur, then probably Nightmare... because Nightmare was cool

-Please forgive any mistakes I made with referring to Nightmare as a 'he', as I tried VERY hard not to. It has no set gender, and you in fact could consider it being both, as you see it first as female (Charlie) then next as male (Webber), so it's neither yet both at the same time... have fun figuring that out!

 _ **Also! I am rewriting chapters that I feel are the worst! Right now, the chapters I have on that list are Chapters 1-3, 22, 35, and 53, so you should keep an eye on those ones if you wish to read the not-horrible versions, and you can add one to the list if you feel one is bad enough to be on it =P A sequel to this is also VERY possible and already planned out if people actually want me to get off my lazy butt and write it XD I might also add more tidbits over time**_

 **FINAL PRODUCT**

 **181,384 Words... roughly**

 **110 Chapters**

 **55 Reviews**

 **35 Favorites**

 **35 Followers**

 **21,642 Views**


	111. Passing

_**A/N:**_ **Hahaha! Proof I have not abandoned this story! Muahahaha! I... um... -clears throat- meant to write and post this on WTWHTO's 2 year anniversary but I got sidetracked. On a brighter note, Chapters 1-18 have been fully rewritten in my new writing style. (Let's see... let's see...) we've got a poll up, asking all of you lovely readers to vote on the most unexpected plot twist in the whole story! Please vote in it, because I want to know hear your thoughts. The story turned 2 years old on June 30** **th** **and I still can't believe how old it's gotten. Anyways, here y'all are. Something I meant to add on to Chapter 108 but never did because I didn't want to ruin the mood, Popsicle's last chapter. Enjoy**

!

 _ **Popsicle's POV**_

A stream somewhere nearby chattered busily. There was a rustle of leaves as some small animal pushed its way out of a nearby bush and nibbled on the leaves and tiny fruits attached to the woody stems. Trees, laden with mid-summer leaves brushed against each other, creating a calming sort of rushing noise. I kept my eyes closed, completely exhausted from my lack of sleep previously. There was a harsh sun beating down on my back, but instead of making me uncomfortable it filled me with strength. I could feel my muscles relaxing, my mind at peace for the first time in awhile. I felt no guilt, no fear, no anger.

A gentle memory played in the back of my mind. Of a chilly winter spent outside, growling playfully at two smaller pups. I remembered my mother watching me with caring eyes, ready to pick me up if I fell, or lick my ears if I failed. I remembered curling up beside her, watching her with wide eyes as she would tell me tales of fate, of wisdom, of victory and truth. She would tell me about my father, the biggest and strongest hound in the pack. She would tell me about the worst summers they had to face together, and the most frightening encounters.

But most of all, she told me about the survivors.

'Survivors', of course, being a general term for any humans that were unfortunate enough to stumble into our world. She would be telling a story of one of her old friends before her gaze would grow dark. _"And then the survivors happened."_ She would always say. _"And he was no more."_ Almost every story ended with them. And I swore to never help one of them. I swore to only hunt, attack, and kill the creatures that claimed so many lives. I swore to never break my oath because that would mark me a failure. I couldn't stand being a failure in the eyes of my mother or deceased father. I would sit on my haunches and watch her with awe as she acted out some of her most proud achievements. Then, when she wasn't looking, I would copy her moves. I promised myself that I would be as great as my father, maybe even better!

And then my mother was killed.

And I broke every single promise I ever made because I didn't just fail to save her, but I started helping the survivors. I helped the ones who killed my own mother. I cringed, shutting my eyes a little tighter. How could I not? It wasn't my owner's fault she was killed, and the one who struck her down quickly got his comeuppance. And he was sad and lonely just like I was... My life had been turned around by that one encounter, and I made a new vow.

Make sure he is safe.

My heart sped up a bit as I thought of Pyrite. She also threw a wrench into my life plans... I knew very well that there was no chance for _her and_ me to become _us_. Even if the size difference wasn't an issue, there was no way she liked me back. I buried my nose under one paw, my heart aching.

I failed all of them, didn't I? I vaguely remembered my last moments... pacing in the underground caverns like I had been ever since Pyrite died when the world turned red and the ground fell away beneath my paws...

How did I survive that...? I must have somehow... unless.

I hesitated before forcing my eyes open.

There was a giant green beast right in front of me.

I stifled a yelp as the rest of my body reacted instinctively. Before I even fully had my wits, I was on my paws with my fur standing on end. My muscles relaxed a little as I recognized the beast, and gradually the fur on my shoulders fell back. It was just the Dragonfly... Pyrite's mother. I glanced around quickly. To my left was the Bearger and to my right the Goose. Behind me, the Deerclops stood quietly over the other giants. I looked back at the Dragonfly, struggling to comprehend what was going on. The silence was broken by a low, deep, airy voice. "Do you understand what has happened?" The voice came from behind me.

"They succeeded," said a smooth and low female voice.

"The five have fallen," added a third voice- this one with a hint of a natural growl in it.

"The world has been saved," the Dragonfly finished. She finally looked down at me, buzzing quietly for a moment. "But it has been destroyed as well."

"It will be reset," the Goose promised.

"This will all happen again," the Bearger growled.

"The true end is coming soon," the Deerclops murmured.

"The final cycle..." The Dragonfly didn't take her gaze off of me. "But you aren't here to hear our ramblings, are you, little one?" I was at a loss for words, and she finally looked back up at her companions. "Prepare yourselves, friends. It won't be long now." As though it was a signal, the other three giants simultaneously turned to leave. The Deerclops shook the ground with his mighty stomps, while the Bearger shoved brambles and trees out of his way. The Goose hopped back into the cover of the forest, where I could see three moslings scuttle out to meet their mother. The Dragonfly watched them go.

"You've come here for my daughter," she guessed. "At this point of time I've been rather protective of her... I don't want to lose her again. But... I can make an exception for you, ice hound. Besides, there are three others who'd like to speak with you."

I was confused, to say the least, but I followed her without protest, my heart swelling at the thought of getting to see Pyrite again.

 _Pyrite... the love of my life._

It wasn't far until she stopped in a sunlit clearing. The sun had yet to move from its perch in the sky. Three hounds were curled up in the sun, one much smaller than the other two. I barely paid them any attention though, because right in front of them was the one I really wanted to see. _Pyrite..._ As though I said her name out loud, the lavae looked up from her conversation and saw me. (I was almost positive I imagined that gleam of affection in her eyes).

She tipped her head. "Popsicle?" _Did she always have those little arm nubs? Does she still grow, even here?_ At the mention of my name, the three hounds glanced over. The leaner hound stood suddenly.

 _Mom!_

"My pup!" Kyra exclaimed with a sigh of relief. I ran over and buried my muzzle in her shoulder fur. The second hound- the largest one, stood close to my mother and looked like he was trying to be protective. The littlest hound, obviously a pup itself, looked around Mom's paws. "Pup..." Kyra broke away, staring at me with wide, happy eyes. "Do you understand who these are?"

I shook my head and Kyra tipped her head, her tongue sticking out of her mouth. Suddenly, the little puppy shot out from her hiding spot and towards me. "Popsicle!" She exclaimed, stopping a few paw steps ahead of me and dropping into a playful fight stance. A sudden image appeared in my head- of being curled into the curve of my mother's belly with the little non-elemental hound next to me. She batted my nose and I squeaked in protest...

"Pepper!" I breathed. I didn't... I never remembered her until now... she died when I was so little...

Which must mean...

The third and final hound stood- a burly ice hound that out-sized Kyra even though females were usually bigger. His paws were huge and his stance was majestic. He padded slowly over to me and looked down at me. He was twice my size, even though I was almost fully grown...

I still found my eyes drifting back to Pyrite, who was patiently waiting for her turn.

The hound reached out with an incredible gentleness considering his size and touched noses with me. "Hello, pup," he rumbled. "My name is Shatter."

"Your father," Kyra added, standing by her mate with pride. Even she was dwarfed by his size, but she didn't seem phased by this. In fact, she seemed to stand a little straighter. I wasn't sure what to feel.. should I be excited to meet him? Should I be panicking because I haven't done anything he would've wanted me to? I lowered my head, indecisive. At first, there was only silence. _I'm a failure. He hates me... he's disappointed in me..._

 _"_ It's amazing to finally meet you, son. I've been watching you for a long time." He glanced at Kyra. "I could never be more proud of your accomplishments."

I quickly looked up, astonished. "But! But I abandoned the pack! I failed you! How... how are you proud of me?"

Shatter's expression suggested heavy thinking. "You have your own mind. Kyra and I fell for the pack life, but you proved it was not for you. You followed your heart instead of rules and standards. Speaking of your heart," his eyes glimmered with knowing. "I know very well you did not come here for me." I felt myself blushing and shuffling my paws in the dirt. My father smiled at me and nuzzled my cheek. "Go to her, pup. Follow your heart. And isn't she what your heart wants?"

"But..."

"It doesn't matter right now," Kyra butted in. She rested her chin on my shoulder. "All that matters is you're happy."

Pepper yipped and panted with delight. "And we can play afterward too!" She said happily.

Pyrite was still waiting patiently. As I padded towards her, she looked up. Her stance instantly softened, and I felt my heart melt a little. "Pyrite!" I breathed. She didn't say anything until I was right next to her. "Pyrite I... I've missed you so much."

She tipped her head. "You really came back for me," she purred. "I've... I've missed you too. I was watching you after..." She was uncomfortably silent. "I'm sorry..." she finished awkwardly.

"It wasn't your fault... It was mine..." 

"Pop, you need to stop beating yourself up," she told me critically. Her gaze softened again. "Can we just... can we not talk about what happened?" She pleaded. "Is it alright if we just relax for a little while and get caught up?"

I nearly protested. I knew she was just trying to distract me from everything, but... I couldn't stop imagining her and me in the sun together; next to each other as we peacefully talked about our days like we hadn't both died. I smiled and nuzzled her playfully.

"I'd like that, Pyrite... I'd like that a lot..."


End file.
